baby goalie is now an all-star!

Congrats to baby goalie* Jonathan Quick of my LA Kings, who was just named an NHL All-Star for the first time. It's a well-deserved honor since this season he's got a 1.93 goals-against-average, a .934 save percentage and six shutouts (he's ranked first in the NHL in shutouts....just sayin'). He's also the first Kings goaltender in a REALLY long time (like since 1981) to be named an All-Star. For those of you who don't know hockey, that is significant because you aren't gonna win a Stanley Cup without a good goalie. Oh, and did I mention he's only 25 (*but looks like he's 12... thus my nickname for him ;)

products i love: the best lotion ever

I can't remember who first introduced me to it, but I now stockpile C.O. Bigelow's Lemon & Pomegranate body cream in the event some evil corporate decision-maker ever decides to stop producing it. I love the smell (sweet yet with a citrus-y bite). I love the texture (thick and not the least bit greasy). And I love that it makes my skin feel silky smooth. I am not alone in these opinions. This is a top rated item on the Bath & Body Works site... yes, this product from the country's oldest apothecary is sold at that bath gel mecca in the mall. But don't hold that against it. It's awesome. Trust me.

products i love: winter wonder

If you are one of my gal pals, chances are good I've given you one of these as a holiday or hostess gift. I LOVE this candle. It's not a Christmas scent (thus its "Winter" name), but evokes all the same warm and cozy feelings. I just lit my second one this season and am kinda sad I only have one more left in my stash.

hurts so good

So on my December stay-cation, I decided I needed to get my workout schedule back on track. I haven't done much since the time changed in October except weekly Wednesday Pilates (with my awesome instructor Marcy, who some of you may recognize as Quendra [with a "Qu"] on Community). Not much Runyon. Not much Wii Fit. Zero Pop Physique.... yet I had two Groupons about to expire in January. So I decided to suck it up and go to the Studio City location when my fave instructor Mackenzie K. was teaching on New Year's Eve morning. Mackenzie is great... she (per her bio on the site ;) "encourages students to honor what their body is giving them on any given day instead of always wishing it was giving them something else. In essence, be in the moment and work hard, but be patient." She works us hard, but what I love about Pop Physique (aka #buttschool) is they push you right to your limit. Just when you feel you might collapse and die, the instructor moves on to work a completely different part of your body. And over the hour, you work EVERY part of your body. But the constant change-ups, which also include changes in music tracks and volume, as well as lighting, make it manageable. And tonight, it actually went by fast. I was surprised when class was over "so soon." I hope that means I'm getting back in shape. Mackenzie said I'm looking stronger. I just signed up for class every Monday in January. Owie.

wise words for the new year

A friend just posted a link to this blog on Facebook... wise words we all need to remember and think about integrating into our daily lives: 30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself

Then that lead to these great finds:

• 30 Things to START Doing for Yourself

• 12 Things Happy People Do Differently

Enjoy!

2011 - my year in review

At the start of 2011, I set six goals for myself (don't call them resolutions!) with the overall goal of making 2011 better than 2010 by "taking care of myself, and striving for happiness in my life and the lives of those close -- and not so close -- to me." I accomplished 3.5 of them, which isn't bad... although two of them I totally failed at. Let's review :)

• Get Healthy: I will eat better and utilize either my Wii Fit or the treadmill -- that I plan to "borrow" from my parents' garage -- at least three times per week, in addition to continuing Pilates. I also want to resume hiking when the time changes.
• Check! This was my biggest accomplishment this year. I met my weight loss goal (25 lbs) plus some by completely changing my eating habits -- no more fast food except for special treats, very little bread, and lots of salad, chicken, lean cuisine, fruit and yogurt. I also worked out a minimum of 2 times per week, sometimes up to 5 times using the Wii Fit starting in mid-January, keeping up Pilates once a week, hiking/running 1-3 times per week at Runyon Canyon from March-October, and adding Pop Physique classes, which are a mix of Pilates, ballet barre work and light weights. It kicks your butt and shapes it up at the same time :) I also started taking my multi-vitamin everyday again and added an extra 2000 mg of Vitamin D since Vitamin D deficiency is thought to be a cause of MS.
• Write More: I will not put my journal in a drawer. I will keep it in eyesight and use it to brain dump feelings and ideas not for public consumption here.
• Fail. I wrote in the journal a few times, mostly about tracking my weight loss goals/successes, but it was in the drawer most of the year. And I only updated this blog 21 times all year. Bad, bad, bad!
• Read Actual Books: A minimum of four this year. One per quarter. That's doable, right? (Sub-goal: I will not let my magazine pile deter me from this goal, no matter how tall it gets.)
• Check! I actually read five books this year, all of which were excellent: Tina Fey's Bossypants, The Help, and The Hunger Games trilogy.
• Volunteer More: Operation Gratitude takes place four minutes from my house. I can give up three hours of my life every few weekends to bring some happiness to the lives of people sacrificing theirs for our freedom. I also plan to participate in the "Walk MS" in April to raise funds for the National MS Society.
• Fail. I didn't volunteer once this year. I thought about it a lot, but never did. I did increase my charitable donations this year though, especially to the National MS Society, LA Mission, amfAR, and Smile Train -- I helped four kids have their cleft palates repaired so they could smile again and live a normal life. That makes ME smile. 
• Host More: I love my house, I have a great kitchen and I just spent a lot of money on an awesome patio. I need to invite people over to enjoy it with me more. I also need to practice cooking more, minus eating more (see goal #1 ;)
• Check! In addition to poker nights and my annual July BBQ and Christmas Cocktails, I also had Grilled Cheese Night again this year and started "Summer Grillin' Saturdays." Oh, and I also co-hosted a baby shower for my dear friend Hilda in August (And she welcomed baby Yevah in September :)
• Travel for Me: I will go to Portland this year to spend time with friends -- I've made that promise. I also hope 2011, one way or another, will finally be my Italian vacation year. I'm thinking either April for someone's birthday, or a solo tour in the Fall.
• Half Check/Half Fail: I did go to Portland and had a fabulous time with my dear friend Jenny and her family. Also went to San Fran in May to see Hugh Jackman's show and visit with my friends Jason and Josh. And went to Orlando for a rainy trip to Disney World and an awesome night at Harry Potter World. But the Italy trip still hasn't happened. I did do a little research on it though... and got a new big suitcase for Christmas ;)

I think those goals were overall good ones so I'm sticking with them for 2012, with minor adjustments. For instance, this year I want to read the classics sitting on my bookshelf that I've never read... The Hobbit, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Jane Eyre. If I get through half of those, that will be a good accomplishment, considering three of them have been on my shelf since high school ;)

And for posterity/since I apparently don't write in my journal anymore, here are some of the memorable things from my 2011:

January:

• Burke Williams trip #1
• Pre-hockey meal at delish Bottega Louie
• My mom and dad celebrated their 41st Anniversary
• Get healthy goal achievial begins
• Game Night #1

February:

• Burke Williams trip #2
• Finally ate at Ford's Filling Station (my 4-years-in-the-making bday dinner with Diana, Daryl and James)
• Stars on Ice in Anaheim

March:

• Hmmm....

April:

• Grilled Cheese Night
• The Los Angeles Kings make the playoffs for the 2nd time since 2002! Lose to friggin' Sharks

May:

• Trip #1: San Francisco for Hugh Jackman in concert
• The 2011 Summer Movie Blockbuster Club kicks off its season
• Trip #2: (work) Hackensack NJ (yuck) and Chicago (yay) for focus groups
• Afternoon tea at Chado with mom and dad

June:

• U2 at Anaheim Stadium
• Pop Physique starts

July:

• Met my weight loss goal
• Hosted my 2nd 4th of July BBQ (on July 3rd)
• Burke Williams trip #3
• Dolly Parton at Hollywood Bowl, with Mom, Dad, Daryl and Diana
• Summer Grillin' Saturdays begin

August:

• Hairspray with John Stamos at Hollywood Bowl
• John Williams @ the Hollywood Bowl, with narrator James Taylor
• Bella the crazy, adorable puppy joins our family

September:

• Trip #3: Portland to see the Z's

October:

• Trip #4: Orlando for party at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
• Foo Fighters at the Forum
• Clinton Foundation 10th Anniversary concert at the Bowl with Bono, The Edge, Lady Gaga
• Apple and pumpkin picking in Oak Glen
• The Kings season begins...

November:

• Dinner at Little Dom's ... delish
• Sophie the cocker spaniel joins our family

December:

• Christmas Cocktails
• 12 days of vacation kicks off
• Christmas with siblings and Granny
• Burke Williams trip #4
• Tea at Rose Tree Cottage in Pasadena
• New Year's Eve dinner at The Melting Pot in Pasadena (too much food!)

And here's what I did this year, according to some of my favorite Facebook status updates:

2011 in films... most of which i didn't see

It's pretty sad that I don't even recognize a third of these movies... I really don't have a favorite movie this year :(