...But first, coffee (with Jen)

We did it!  We attended the Lantern Festival - finally!  Over the past few years I really wanted to get out to the festival and have take in this experience. We did not attend previous years due to the weather.  There is no way in July that I want to go stand in the cold (like single digit temps) and sometimes wet weather to see some lights.  But this year - this year they moved the festival from the usual last Saturday in July to the next weekend due to bad weather and I'm really glad that they did.  It was fantastic to get out and actually enjoy this event. The lantern display, which was up on the hill, was amazing and very well done.  There were a variety of lanterns on display - some large, small, and at various levels of detail.  I imagined that there would be more lanterns throughout the park, but they were all focused in this area.  And, we almost missed it!  Thankfully, I asked a friend if they knew where they would be and - to ...

As an avid coffee drinker, I use to dress up my beverage with both milk and sugar (2 teaspoons).  It was like a little treat in my over-sized mug that I indulged in a few times a day. This has changed recently as I am trying to eat better and become healthier. The milk in my coffee is skim or 0.5, and the sugar got a kick to the curb. I didn't start this change on my own - I was quite happy with my little sugary coffee.  This change started with a challenge that my co-workers had taken on themselves, that I had piggybacked on. The challenge was to give something up in your diet for 30 days. Mine was sugar in my coffee.  Doing this challenge with friends kept me accountable, which is something that I greatly needed to break away from this habit. Picture source: Kaboompics.com To be honest, a month after the challenge has ended, I don't miss the sugar.  The important part is still in my cup - the delicious, pipping hot coffee. It's been two months, and I ...