Happy 4th of July!

Just a few photos of my holiday.

Last night I went to the symphony's Summer POPS concert, Celebrate America!

There were fireworks after the show.

The harvest from my garden today. Also, this is what happens when you leave a pickling cucumber on the vine too long.

And my outfit today.

Dress from Dress Up boutique.

Red & white striped Toms wedges and Meredith Jackson earrings from Bevello.

I hope you're having a fun and safe holiday!

Garden Update

I have to share an update on my garden. It's turned into a jungle!

First I planted herbs in the empty side of the garden a few weeks ago.

I planted a few things (catnip, rosemary, and bay) in small pots too until I buy nicer big pots. I added two mint plants from my parent's yard to this part of my patio as well.

My neighbor's strawberries decided to migrate under the fence, so I have my own strawberry patch.

And finally, my little garden turned into a jungle! It's hard to tell, but the tops of tomatoes are now about eye level with me! Also the cucumber plant is climbing the house. Thankfully I have baby vegetables starting to grow on everything. I can't wait until I can harvest something other than herbs and strawberries!

A Blogging Break

As you can see, I took quite a while off from blogging. I'm settling into my new life in Charlotte, and I'm not a rocket scientist anymore. I don't want to give up the blog just yet, but posts will probably continue to be just as sparse as they have been so far this year. If you want to keep up with my life, follow me on twitter, pinterest and instagram (username lizo830). I use both regularly. Here's a snapshot of my life as documented on instagram.

 

I try to garden.

I run in the woods.

I do yoga.

And I finally have a North Carolina driver's license.

I hope you'll continue to follow me even if I don't blog regularly.

My secret to weight loss!

I accidentally started losing weight. Since I wanted to continue losing weight, I had to think about what I had been doing differently. I figured it out, and I've continued now for a month. I'm down 9.6 lbs and I now fit into my size 29 jeans (down from size 31). My big weight loss secret is...(drum roll please)...

...eating less.

There. It is SO stupid simple it makes me angry, but it's working, so I'm going with it. It's surprisingly simple. I just eat when I'm hungry, and I'm not grazing during work. I still eat whatever I want, but since I know I'm eating less, I tend to choose foods that keep me full longer like oatmeal, quinoa, and lots of veggies. I slip up occasionally, but I've given myself a whole year to reach my goal, so it's okay.
Do you have any life changing realizations that are just as simple?

Songs that keep me going at work.

I listen to the iheatradio app at work for music. In the afternoon, I need really upbeat music to make sure I don't get sleepy. My favorite station for ridiculously upbeat pop music is based on Shake It by Metro Station. Here's a sampling of the soundtrack to my afternoons.

Today

So I don't normally talk about my health on this blog, but since most of the people who read it are family and close friends, today I am. I'm currently eating a very big breakfast because as of 9 am I have to fast several hours. I'm going to have a CAT scan this afternoon. Although I'm not scared of the scan, it is weird to be going to a hospital alone even for a simple scan. At my last rheumatologist appointment, my doctor found a small lump, or nodule, in my neck. Since I have had hypothyroidism since I was a teen, it is most likely just a nodule on my thyroid. However it's a bit far from where my thyroid should be, so she wanted to get a better look. My parents did offer to drive up this weekend, but I asked them to wait in case I need the nodule removed. I would definitely want them here if that's the outcome. I'm pretty confident it'll be fine, since most thyroid nodules are just left alone. Well, back to my breakfast so I can finish up before nine!