Move of the Month

Lateral Plyo Squats (or Power Squats if you do Insanity)

How to do it:  Start standing with your feet together, arms down by your sides. Step your right foot out to the side (about hip-width apart) and bend your knees, holding both arms in front of body, sitting back into a squat: press your hips behind you (as if reaching back for a chair) and keep your chest lifted and eyes forward

[A]. Quickly push off the floor with both feet, jumping up and to the left [B]. Land stepping out to the side and back into your squat position.

For the whole thigh-toning circuit, click here.

Quick Form Tip: Use your arms to get your momentum going and to help you push off the ground.

Turkey Tetrazzini

I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving!  I got this recipe from my mother-in-law last year, and it's one of my husbands favorites from growing up.

Since we always have lots of leftovers after the holiday, it's nice to be able to make them into something a little different.  (It gets boring eating turkey for three days in a row!) So, the night after Thanksgiving I made this for dinner!  It's a favorite that we only make once or twice a year!

Turkey Tetrazzini

-8 oz spaghetti, broken
-5 Tbsp. butter
-6 Tbsp. flour
-1 c. light cream
-1 tsp. salt
-1 c. sliced mushrooms
-3 c. cooked turkey
-1/2 c. parmesan
-5 Tbsp. minced green pepper
-1/2 c. cheddar cheese

1) Cook spaghetti.
2) Melt butter and blend in flour.  Stir broth into flour mixture.  Add cream and cook until mix thickens and bubbles.
3) Add salt, drained spaghetti, green peppers, mushrooms, and turkey.  Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake at 350 for 30 mins.

I'm sorry I forgot to take a picture!.. But I stole one from online. It looks somewhat like this when you're done.

Olay Pro-X Cleansing System

This is seriously one of my favorite beauty devices!

I got one from work a few months ago and use it almost every day!  It's around $20-$30 depending on where you get it from.  Costco has the best deal.   I think it comes with an extra head and cleanser as well for around $30.  I got mine from Walgreens where it retails at $29.99 for just what you see here. 

I think they recommend changing the heads every 3 months or so.  They're around $10 for two (at Wagreens anyway, I'm sure they're cheaper elsewhere.) It has two different speeds and takes 2 AA batteries.

For those of us (me!) who are too poor to afford a Clarisonic, this is the next best thing for an affordable price.

Trend to Try: Blazer Over Maxi

Maxi dresses are for summer, right?  Well now that it's winter I thought this trend would be appropriate: a longdress with a blazer over top to keep you warm! 

Would you rock this trend?

Floral Maxi Dress 

Oldnavy.com

$16.99

 Blazer

hm.com
$49.95

Harvest Card

I figured since Thanksgiving is today it would only be appropriate for today's card idea to be a harvest card!  The past couple years I have become addicted to making cards with my mom, and this particular card we made in one of our monthly card clubs.

I love how the pumpkin pops!  We punched out 5 circles, folded them in half,  and glued one side to another circle until we had this pumpkin.  The colors are so festive!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Running in the Cold!

Now that's it's getting FREEZING in my neck of the woods I'm a lot less motivated to go out and run.  Every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday some girls in my neighborhood meet around 7:00 to go running together.  I just joined them a few weeks ago but haven't gone since because it's getting way too cold. 

Anyway, I found this great article at Shape.com<--read the whole thing here. (one of my favorite fitness magazines) called "5 Cold Wather Running Tips."

1. Wear warm socks. Of course this makes sense! I don't think I have warm socks to run in, so it could be a good investment.

2. Dress in layers. Of course it will be cold when you first start running, but after awhile you get hot right?  Well if you dress in layers you can take off some things as you get warm.

3. Consider throwing on a scarf. Wearing a scarf while running?  Whay they say makes sense I suppose.  "when the temps drop because the cooler, drier air hurts their lunges or throats. Combat this by wearing a scarf. The moisture from your own breath keeps the air more humid and therefore easier to breathe."  Still not sure if I'd be comfortable with a scarf or not.

4. Watch where you step. You don't want to slip or fall!  Especially if it's snowy and icy!

5. Ease into it. Let your body adjust to the cold weather over time.  Maybe start with one day a week and work up from there!

Pumpkin Crumb Cake

Okay, I'm going to start this off by saying I love pumpkin pie-- BUT my sister introduced me to this recipe years ago and I have to say I love it SO much more than regular pumpkin pie.  It's called "Pumpkin Crumb Cake."  Although I should tell you it's not exactly "cake" so to speak.  It's more of a hybrid between cake and a pie.

Here's how to make it:

- 1 pkg yellow cake mix
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1/2 c. butter, melted
- 1 (15 oz) can of pumpkin
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 c. sugar
- 1/4 c. brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 c. sugar
- 3 Tbsp. butter, softened
- 1/2 c. chopped nuts (optional) --I've never had it with the nuts.. but if you like nuts it's worth a try!

1)  Preheat oven to 350 F and grease 9X13 pan. Reserve 1 cup cake mix.
2)  In large bowl, combine remaining cake mix with 1 egg and 1/2 c. melted butter.  Mix well and pat in pan.  (this is your crust)
3)  In large bowl, mix pumpkin, 3 eggs, 1/2 c. sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon.  Pour over crust. (this is the filling)
4)  In small bowl combine 1 c. cake mix, 1/2 c. sugar, 3 Tbsp. softened butter.  Crumble over pumpkin filling. (this puts the crumb in crumb cake! :P)
5)  Sprinkle nuts evenly over the top if desired.  Bake 40-45 mins.

DONE!  See how it's like a cake and a pie?  Anyway--I'm making this tomorrow night for Thanksgiving so I'll post a picture of it so you can see the deliciousness!

Nice and golden brown!