About Me

Welcome to The Fiery Chronicles! You have found the place where I share everything I find beautiful and interesting in life. This includes beauty and fashion tips, fitness/health advice, recipes, and the chronicles of my adventures. I hope you enjoy the ride!

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Avocado Egg Salad

Ready for a new and easy way to spice up your lunch time blues? {Oh my word, that sounded so much like an infomercial} Well I have a way for you to do it. Today for lunch I had a delicious avocado egg salad wrap. Absolutely to die for. The awesome part about it? It took about 10 minutes. I'm all about saving myself time while getting something tasty in my belly! So, here is the recipe for your tasting pleasure. :) 



Ingredients
4 hard boiled eggs, chopped 
2 hard boiled egg whites 
1 medium avocado 
1 tbsp light/non-fat mayonnaise 
2 tsp red-wine vinegar 
1 tbsp lemon juice 
Sprinkle of Salt and Pepper 


Directions
1. Boil your eggs for 10 minutes then run under cold water before cracking. While the eggs are boiling chop up your avocado to save time.
2. Add all ingredients to medium sized bowl
{*Tip!* If you always end up destroying your eggs while peeling them, try cracking every bit of the shell into small pieces before peeling. Usually I can get the entire thing off in one piece} 
3. Chop your eggs and mix into other ingredients 
4. Serve your avocado egg salad on a wrap, bread, or lettuce (for a gluten free or lower calorie option) 

Enjoy! :) 

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

A little inspiration =)








An *Affordable* Stylin Couple

Hey Everyone! So earlier today I saw this pin of a celebrity couple and how to get 'their style.' Well since everything they were wearing was obviously out of my price range, I decided to go searching for a more affordable version of the same outfit. I've gotta say, I think the pieces that I came up with look pretty close to the original picture.

Here is the original style setup...



And here is mine! The only thing I didn't list below the picture is the guys shirt which was an H&M shirt for $24.95. 


Hope you enjoy my collection and maybe try some pieces out with your boo! Once I get all the pieces together for me and my man I'll post a couple of pictures for your viewing pleasure. =) 



The styling couple


H m jacket
£25 - hm.com

Wallis canvas bag
$35 - wallisfashion.com

H M leather belt
£7.99 - hm.com

H&M metal sunglasses
£6.99 - hm.com

Women's Nomad Disco Gold
$42 - shoes.com

Chino | H&M US
$30 - hm.com

shorts : Target
$25 - target.com

Espardilles | H&M US
$18 - hm.com

Gözlük – H&Mden
$9.95 - hm.com

Banana Nut Bread

This morning my boo accidentally slept through his alarm, (I'm not sure I've ever known him to do this so I was very surprised. Poor thing must've been exhausted). So I decided that I would surprise him when he came home with a loaf of Banana Nut Bread because he loves the stuff! But... I wanted to make it healthy! So I came up with this recipe! :) I only changed two little things but it makes it so much better for you and it tastes exactly the same! {If not better}

The two things I changed were the oil and sugar. Instead of using oil I substituted that for apple sauce, and instead of sugar, I used honey! Below is the recipe. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!


Ingredients
2 cups of flour (whole wheat if you have it) 
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt 
1/2 cup sugar free applesauce
3/4 cup honey 
2 eggs, beaten
2-3 mashed overripe bananas
3-4 tbsp. crushed cashews 

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x5 loaf pan. 
2. In large bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt. In separate bowl mix together applesauce and honey. Stir in beaten eggs, mashed bananas and crushed cashews until well blended. 
3. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture - just until its moist. 
4. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. 
5. Bake in preheated oven for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of load comes out clean. 
6. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes then remove and enjoy! :) 



Monday, April 23, 2012

Pastel love.

I don't know about you guys but I am in love with the pastels of this season! I tend to dress in all the faded, natural colors normally and my momma always tells me, "You need a little spark in your outfit!" Haha. So she is very happy I've started incorporating neons into my wardrobe ;) But anyway, here is a showcase that really exemplifies my 'first love' in fashion.  Let me know what you think of it! :)

ciao bella!
Timex Weekender Oufit


Saturday, April 21, 2012

Peanut Butter, Chocolate, Banana Granola Bars!

Guys, these things are amazing. No joke. I made them a couple months back and have kept them stocked in the freezer ever since. They are super easy to make and don't have any ridiculous ingredients.

What you need is::

1  banana
1/2 cup  peanut butter
1 cup  granola (I just buy the cheap granola cereal - try to not get it too sweetened)
1/4 cup  chocolate chips

Place the ingredients in a bowl and mash it all up. Then lay out some wax paper and plop your gooey mixture down on it and shape it or roll it into bars. Now all you have to do is freeze it! See? So easy. And so delicious!

These bars give you about 15 grams of protein {essential to every diet} and are only about 400 calories. {I'm not a fan of calorie counting because it's not about how much you eat, but about what you eat, regardless there is the info for those of you who want to know}

Hope you guys enjoy this healthy snack! :)


Yes, Summer is coming...

Everyone is talking about getting yourself ready for summer, "Get that beach body you want!" I can sympathize because this is the time of year that we tend to show more of our bodies off, but why not keep your body up all year long?

Today I'm going to try to give you some simple things to incorporate into your life and some snacks that are delicious and easy to make!
This is what I'm not going to do - I'm not going to tell you to do 500 boring old sit-ups, or run 5 miles, or lift weights for two hours. I want you to feel like this is something doable and that you will see results after doing it. Because...




One thing that is so simple, and so easy to do is abs. You can be done with an ab workout in 5 minutes! We all have 5 minutes ;)

This workout is what I do every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Believe me, you do this workout and you will see results. It doesn't take long, just perseverance. If you think what I list is too many reps, CUT IT DOWN! You know yourself and your body, there is no reason for you to hurt yourself by pushing too hard. Also, I've added some links for you if you don't know what these exercises are.

So here it goes::

1} In and Out - 20 reps
2} Bicycle with twist - 20 reps
3} Knee Hugs  {I do all my workouts on the floor so don't think you need a chair} - 20 reps
4} Hip Rock and Raise  - 20 reps
5} Oblique Crunches - 20 each side
6} Mason Twist {Since this is the last thing I do I like to push myself as hard as I can, but you can do whatever you like} - 40 reps {Count when your wrists hit one side of your body, not on both sides}

Now ladies, lest you think I am just making this up and spitting it out of my tush, I just tested the time on this workout. I did, in fact just do it in between the list and this sentence. ;) It took me 3.4 minutes.


If you feel like an added challenge, do it twice. Take a minute break in between the sets and then go at it again. At most you will be dedicating 10 minutes to the health of your body and self esteem.


That quote really is true, working out is proven to improve mood because it releases endorphins {which we know as the 'feel good' chemicals} in our brain. So, want to have a better day? Work out! :)

Have a great weekend guys, and I'll get you some recipes and snack ideas later. I think you're probably tired of reading my ranting by now.




Footnote: My fiance has a degree in Health and Exercise Science's so he always helps me with my workouts to make sure I'm, 1} doing them correctly, and 2} working out all the muscles in that area. He's kinda a stud, at least I think so. =) 

Friday, April 20, 2012

Happy Days on Pinterest

I have a confession to make - I am mildly obsessed with Pinterest. It is one of my favorite pastimes and I am on the site a little bit more than I should be for my productivity. Oh well. Who's keeping tabs anyway?!

So I decided that since I love Pinterest so much I would start sharing some of my favorite findings. I intend to do this once a week {Maybe a Friday tradition?} but I may actually do it more often. ;)

I hope you enjoy all the different beauties that I have found and if you want to see more or find out where I got these images, follow me! Have a nice weekend! :)


Pinterest Finds


Pastel Skirt
pinterest.com

My Eclectic Taste
pinterest.com

loves.
pinterest.com

Turquoise Accents
pinterest.com

My Eclectic Taste
pinterest.com

Friday, April 13, 2012

Jessie's JoyJars

Hey Guys, I wanted to deviate from fashion and the trivial things in life (even though I will be the first to admit that I get sidetracked by them on a daily basis) to look at something that is a lot deeper.



Jessie's JoyJars is a charity that is being promoted by the organization Sevenly. The Jessie Reese Foundation is a charity for childhood cancer. You can watch a video here about Jessie and her fight with cancer, and also of her desire to bring light into other childhood cancer victims. So she came up with Joy Jars. Her wish was that every child fighting cancer would be encouraged to Never Give Up. Jessie lost her fight with cancer a year after being diagnosed but she did so much good in that short amount of time.

This week, is her birthday.

It is special not only because of that, but because every donation made during this week is being matched by an anonymous donor. I would encourage you all to make a donation or buy one of these inspiring shirts that reminds us all to Never Give up.



Below is an interview with Jessie's father, Erik Rees.


Friday, April 6, 2012

brighten your wardrobe - with NEON!

Spring is coming and it's time to add a little spice to your life. Neon is back, and in a big way ladies. It's presence has been seen on the runways since last fall but now us 'normal folks' are just starting to get the memo. ;)

I know a lot of you are saying, 'Good grief, please not the 80's again.' But hear me out. This new neon is by far 100% more sophisticated than the 80's neons. 

Take a look at this outfit. Now isn't that just a lovely combo? It's sophisticated, yet fun and alive! I think it adds an adorable spark to an otherwise 'normal' outfit. 


If you don't want to commit 100% to the neon, add an accessory instead of a wardrobe piece. Ease yourself into the love of neon. ;) 


Another one... 
I have started incorporating neon's into my wardrobe and honestly, I love it. Just wearing something that bright makes me feel alive and ready to conquer the day! It sounds silly, but you know that what you're wearing represents/effects how you feel - why not feel spunky and be happy!? 

Later I will be posting about places where you can find some of these wardrobe poppers.  But for now... ciao bella!