It snowed on Saturday night. Today? It was 71 degrees and sunny! BLISS. Things are starting to bloom, we’re planning our garden, I’ve broken out my flippies. Life is good!
I’m thankful today for SPRING!!!
Front yard:
The SUN!
The garden is going to run along the whole back fence, as you can see, I’m about 1/4 of the way done tilling.
Yay SPRING!!!!
Today I’m thankful for my CAMERA!! I’ve been having so much fun with it! Today I wasn’t feeling well AT ALL but I had solo Lu duty after work because Shaun had volleyball. Rather than sit inside and watch Super Why! I decided to let Lu play outside while I snapped some pictures.
I wish this was in focus but I still love it!
Model Lu!
What does it all mean?!?!
Airplane!
Hey Mama!
I did take some non Lu shots:
Dang Power Lines!
Spring is coming!!!!!!!!!!!
All pictures were done in M! Yay me!
It’s been cloudy and grey in Boise the last few days. Actually today there are blue skies but Lucy is at daycare so no pictures yet!
Anyway to take pictures of a moving child in low light (not an easy feat!) I use a higher ISO (my cameras highest is 1600 and I normally use 200) and then a wider aperture (F4.5 on my camera) so that my shutter speed is faster (thanks for the tips Laura!).
I think my results were pretty good!
The birdie boo!
And I took this one, for fun.
A group of friends and I are reading the book Understanding Exposure to better our photography skills. I read the first chapter on Saturday night and was excited to play around yesterday. All of these pictures were taking on M so I figured out the aperture and shutter speed. It’s been so long since I used a manual camera that I had forgotten how to use the light meter-der! Now it’s not so hard to take pictures on M!
White Balance:
“Shade”
“Tungsten”
“Cloudy”
“Cloudy” with a different set-up
I was playing with my shutter speed here and thought that this was a pretty picture.
Not the best picture by any means, but I love Lu’s face.
We’re in the thick of potty training!
Lu’s lunch.
Lu’s lunch companions (I wish Mo (the doll with red hair) was in better focus).
Tofu! (Love this picture!)
Cauliflower (playing with the focus):
This is fun!!!
I didn’t forget last week, I was just stuck in Richmond due to a huge hail and rain storm. I was supposed to get home last Thursday but instead I got to spend another night with Connie*, this time at the Chicago Airport. Last week I was going to be thankful to be home and in my bed, but that didn’t happen, so I was actually thankful for my American Express Corporate card 
This week? I’m thankful for BIG HUGS.
Watch. You’ll smile. Promise.
*Anyone get the Mad Men reference? LOVE that show.
Boise has many things…but it does NOT have good Indian Food. I decided a few weeks ago to just make it myself. I did a bunch of research and created my own recipe for Butter Chicken/Tofu. Man is it GOOD. I made it this past weekend for Friend Dinner along with Jenna’s Chana Masala. It was some good eats!
It’s a lot of ingredients and it takes some time but MAN is it worth it!
Ingredients:
-1 TBSP grape seed oil
-1 shallot finely chopped
-1 small onion finely chopped
-2 TBSP butter
-Juice from half of a lemon
-1 TBSP minced ginger
-1 TBSP chili garlic sauce
-1/4 tsp fenugreek whole seeds, then ground (too much and it will be bitter)
-1 tsp chili powder
-1 tsp ground cumin
-1 tsp garam masala
-pinch cayenne pepper
-1 bay leaf
-1 can chopped tomatoes, pureed (I did this with my hand blender)
-1/2 cup heavy cream
-1/2 cup plain yogurt
-salt and pepper to taste
-1 TBSP grape seed oil
-1 pound chicken thighs, cut into small pieces or a block of tofu cut into pieces, coated with 1 TBSP grape seed oil, cumin, garam masala, and chili powder and baked for 30 minutes, flipped half way through (or half of each)
-1 tsp garam masala
-1/3 cup ground cashews
Instructions:
-Sauté onions, shallots, and grape seed oil over medium high heat until translucent.
-Melt butter and add lemon, ginger, chili garlic sauce, fenugreek, chili powder, cumin, garam masala, cayenne pepper, and bay leaf. Stir until well incorporated.
-Add pureed tomatoes, stir and cook about 5 minutes.
-Add cream, yogurt, salt and pepper. Stir well, turn heat to low and simmer while you prepare chicken.
-Heat oil in a separate skillet, add chicken and garam masala, cook until browned.
-Add chicken to sauce and stir in ground cashews, stir well, and cover. Cook until chicken is no longer pink.
-Enjoy!
(Shaun LOVES this with mashed potatoes and cauliflower-2 potatoes and a head of cauliflower, boiled, mashed, and then made like normal mashed potatoes.)
Shaun was so excited about getting Butter Chicken again (I made it a few weeks ago) that he found good Bollywood music/dance videos and had those on loop on You Tube AND he looked up how to say “Welcome” in Hindi. He and Lu welcomed our guests.
Boise has good Indian food now!
Today is a BIG one. Today (and everyday) I’m thankful for BIKRAM YOGA! I finished my 60 in 60 today. Sixty classes in sixty days. It was amazing and I had my best class yet.
Yesterday I went out and bought my “reward” which is a new (and my first) Lululemon outfit. I got groove shorts and a pink top:
I also got a new fittoes pink towel
It was really fun to indulge and reward myself for my hard work 
.
I started class by going in early to meditate in the room. I wanted to make sure my mind was calm so that I could have a really good class. At first, I was so excited that my mind wouldn’t calm down but eventually it did.
Class started and I was extremely focused and getting really deep into postures. I think my back bend was the deepest I’ve ever done!
Every posture was going well and I was so happy. Yesterday, during Standing Bow Pulling Pose I got a really bad cramp in my right calf and it didn’t go away until late last night. I was unable to do some of my favorite postures yesterday because of the cramp so I was really worried that it would happen again today. I made sure to hydrate and when I would feel my right calf start to tense up, I would imagine that I was breathing right to that area. It worked! I even briefly touched my head to my knee in Standing Head to Knee (my ability NOT to is all in my head-I can totally do this but I always fall out the minute I think “I CAN’T do this”).
We get to the floor series and I’m just so happy. During the last belly down savasana, Courtney, the teacher asked me if I had gotten a new costume. I answered “yes.” She asked if it was a reward for something. I said, “yes”. She then told the class that I had completed my 60 in 60 and everyone clapped. It made me smile and reminded me why I love Bikram Yoga Boise SO MUCH. One of my teachers was practicing next to me and she gave me a little floor clap to let me know she was proud of me.
During Paschimotthanasana (Stretching Pose) I had my forehead touching my thumbs and Courtney asked me if I could do that at that beginning of my 60 day challenge and I answered “No.” Jamie, the owner of the studio, was also practicing and she said, “Chelsea has great proportions.” To which I replied, “That is the FIRST time anyone has ever said that about me.”
It’s true, my legs have always been a “hindrance.” They are incredibly short which makes cycling, running, and even swimming just a little bit harder. With a 27 inch inseam, by body and head is longer than my legs by 4 inches. I’ve always hated my legs but I’ve been consciously working on LOVING my legs through this journey and I was almost there. After that comment and after thinking about it some more, I’m there. I LOVE my legs. Who knew? Yoga is something where my legs don’t limit me!
During our final savasana the class cheered for me again and Courtney asked what the 60 day challenge had meant to me. I got choked up but answered: “I started the challenge with the goal of getting my pre-baby body back. Very quickly, I realized that it wasn’t about that. It was about the peace and acceptance it brought me.” Which got some applause
Courtney then said some fabulously nice things about me including how my body has changed (it has!) and how it will continue to change. She then dropped off a shirt, note, and a pen and I got to sign the Challenge Wall!
(Crappy phone photo warning!)
It says: What will be, will be. Remember…YOU are beautiful! ~Chelsea Titus 3.3.11
This saying came to me about 2 weeks into my 60 day challenge. I was in the shower thinking about how skinny I could get doing Bikram. I stopped myself and said that. It’s been my mantra ever since.
So yes, I’m very thankful for Bikram, it has changed my life. I love my studio and all the friends I’ve made. The instructors and all the people who take classes are so encouraging and make me happy that I’m part of such an amazing community. I can’t wait to go to class tomorrow.
Front:
Bikram Yoga Boise
I did the Bikram Yoga Challenge
and all I got was…
Back:
A Better Body
Peace of Mind
Lower Blood Pressure
Stronger Core
6 Pack Abs
Reduced Stress
A Coconut Butt
Increased Flexibility
More Stamina
Increased Balance
Mental Clarity
…and a lot more!
60
in sixty days
