3 mile

Rainbows Can Run

10:30:00 AM


Everyone has a list. A list of recipes to try, places to travel, things to do. We all have them, some maybe shorter than the other but there they are. One of the things on my list of things to try was the Color Run. 
You may have heard of it, they have them all over. Since the weather has slowly gotten warmer and warmer, the walks and runs have begun!

This past weekend, my family came to visit me at my University to take part in the ColorVibe Color Run. It's a 5k (3 mile) run/walk that many people take part in. The best thing about the whole thing? You get completely full of bright and fun colors! You basically become a human rainbow! 



The race started off somewhat early in the morning, at 9 o'clock. We arrived early as it was recommended. There was a DJ who was trying to get the crowd excited to run off. 
Soon, we gathered into the starting line (different waves were let go at different times as to not have a very crowded track). We were blasted with purple at that point and let off. 



Of course, I tried my best to snap a few photos of the event. Though it was a bit difficult because I didn't want the colorful dusk to get into my phone and create problems with it. 
We dashed through pink, green and twirled through blue. 




At the end of the 5k, there was a party with music and everyone was tossing their colors up into the air. Our goal was to get the most color we could, and I feel that we accomplished that! 



It was a lot of fun and this is something I would actually do again! If you ever have the time to attend a Color Run, of any kind (sometimes they have different names in different places), you definitely should! A lot of these races have promotions so you can get group tickets for a reasonable price. 


Have you done anything like this? Or have you seen other events like this one? 

I hope you're all having a lovely weekend!
xx

doughnuts

Exploring and Relaxing are the same thing

1:30:00 PM


When the works starts to pile up, when the nights start to get a little restless, that's when you know it's time for a "you" day. A day just to take time for yourself. Creating your own happiness. 
I've had a very strange last couple of weeks. I can't really describe it to be honest. It was just weird. Luckily it's over, this is a new week (even though I'm writing this ahead). I'm being quite optimistic. Anyway, I had a "me" day. To try to make everything seem okay again. Clear my head a bit. Leaving the room, packing my bag with my camera, water, and a few other essentials, I was off on a day of exploring. 

After wandering the local mall, browsing through Kohl's and Target and picking up a Mother's Day gift, I decided to take a hike. Literally. But before leaving, I also grabbed a Mango Smoothie from Orange Julius. 
I've been to this hiking spot before, but now that there is no snow on the ground I could properly sit down and enjoy it! You can read that blog post here. I also snapped these whilst there before hiking back down and continuing on with my day. 



I also spotted this guy on my way back down to the car!

Month


I did adult-y things that day. Like stopping off at the grocery store to pick up a few bits, making sure I stayed under twenty dollars too. Quite a feat. 

Eventually, I returned back to my dorm room to put away my grocery store purchases before leaving once again to go to a late lunch, or early dinner. I had a tomato mozzarella on a flatbread from Panera. It was delicious! Sadly, I forgot to take a photo of it for you. It looked great! I promise. 

I decided after that, even though I was sort of full, I wasn't quite ready to go back to the dorms quite yet, so I set out to find a frozen yogurt spot. I needed it. I did remember to take a photo of that. 

Once I dropped my car off in the parking lot, I felt like I had consumed enough sugar for 3 children. Therefore the day was not over quite yet. I didn't have a schedule to keep or anything that had to be done right away. I took a walk around campus. The snow has melted very quickly since the last time I have shown you around! That post is here. So I'll give you a little update.








I even sat on a nice little bench and watched the sunset and took in the sounds of the birds for a little bit before walking about a bit more. There was a woodchuck on the river bank nearby, making quite the odd sounds. 


I also had one of those "this photo is perfect" moments. Are you ready for it?? This one
I noticed there were birds in a tree above me, and snapped this and smiled when I reviewed it because I felt like it was perfect. 



Then it was time to go back to the room and relax, snapping this photo of the sunset and putting it on instagram here. 

It was such a great day. Ending with a movie and a nice chat. I honestly felt so good after it. Not having a worry, and putting it all aside just for the day. It was just what I needed. Though I did get a very sunburnt nose and a few odd sunburnt fingers, it was worth it. 


I hope you all had great weekends! What did you do? Have you ever taking a day that's just for you? If you have, what did you do? What would your perfect day be like?
Let me know in the comments! I love reading them!
xx
Kenzie

Baking

Spring Sweets

12:30:00 PM



I'm cutting back on eating so many sweets, I swear! While I've been away living at University, there are a few things that I've missed and that my sweet tooth misses as well. And that's homemade cookies. As soon as spring break rolled around, I knew I had to whip up a batch. 
Still trying to eat healthy while being home can be a challenge, finding a few alternatives to certain ingredients in a recipe can actually be quite easy!
I've made oatmeal cookies before (you can read that post right here), this was a bit different. 
These don't have flour or eggs! 
For this recipe you will need:
2/3 Cup (58 g) old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 banana
1 cup peanut butter 
6 Table spoons brown sugar
1/4 cup butterscotch chips
1/4 cup white chocolate chips

One thing that was special about this recipe that I tried, was that I actually made my own peanut butter using this recipe from Sallys Baking Addiction. It made it even healthier and it's very simple to make as well! Though it is a simple recipe, you certainly do not need to make these, and while Sally used honey roasted peanuts, I used just plain salted peanuts as I wanted to try it out for myself and did not have honey roasted in my cupboards!

To start making these, take a medium bowl and add in the oats, cinnamon, and baking soda. In a seperate bowl, mix in your peanut butter, banana, and brown sugar. It's okay if it's not creamy, as I didn't use an egg. While I was doing this I got quite nervous but it turns out well!

After mixing, add in the butterscotch and white chocolate chips!
Now chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes in your refrigerator and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit! (176 Celsius).
You'll now need two baking sheets, and if you don't like cleaning them after I would suggest using parchment paper. It comes in quite handy. And after your cookie dough is done chilling, you can scoop small balls onto the sheet, pressing down lightly to make sure they flatten. 

After this, my cookie dough balls were kind of greasy/oily looking and I blotted them with a napkin to take it off. I placed about 9 cookies on one try and 5 on the other. You can certainly spread these out more evenly than I did! 
Bake for about 9 to 10 minutes. I think mine were in for about 9. 

After baking, take them out and let them cool.
These cookies are delicious and I was pleasantly happy with the fact that I couldn't really tell I had even put banana into it. Thinking about it now, I don't think I can at all. 
 I think these are actually going quite fast at my house, which is always a good sign and I will probably make more! Especially if I can take them to my dorm room for a little snack at some point! 
I hope you enjoyed this recipe! I love baking and the fact that I can when I'm home, is great! 
Are you making any goodies lately? I feel like spring has brought the little baker inside of me! 
Hope you all have had great weeks! 
Thanks for reading! 
xx
Kenzie


5k

Honoring Veterans

1:00:00 PM

There are many events through the states and probably the world that honor Veterans and raise money for organizations that help them. There happens to be one in my own hometown that raises money to send veterans on a day trip to the capital, Washington D.C. This is called an Honor Flight. In honor of their sacrifice and what they have done for the country. When they take off for their trip, family members and friends are there at the airport to see them off and when they return they are greeted with cheers and applause, something some of them may not have gotten when they returned from their service. 


An event that I had the chance to attend, while home on spring break, along with my mom, step dad and a few of their friends, was called the Honor Walk held by a local brewery. Thousands of people gather in the morning on the first Saturday of spring. (yes I know that was days ago, but I haven't found the time to put this post up just yet!)
The walk is considered a 5k (which means it's about 3 miles.) I like being active and being outside in the rare warm weather was great. Though in the beginning it was a bit chilly, it did warm up as the sun stayed out a bit longer. 


There are a group of people who decide to run, though I think that the majority of participants decide to walk. The group I was in was keeping a brisk pace, which was good because I can't stand to walk too slowly, unless I'm staring at something or completely distracted. There were also a few dogs that were there and it was somewhat difficult to not hug them and take them home. 


After walking, many of the 21 and over humans head over to the beer tent. Wanting to avoid the crowds, and fill our stomachs first, my parents and their family friends and I, all went out to eat. We ate at a local restaurant I actually had never stepped foot in before. Being in a new restaurant was fun and I also tried my first ever flat bread sandwich! It was called a caprese and it was actually delicious. 


I'm not quite 21 yet, therefore I went home instead of going back to the brewery with everyone. All in all, it was a great day and I had fun. 

Have you gone to an even that raised money for something before? What did you do? 
I hope the weather has been great wherever you live! 
As always, thanks for reading!
xx
Kenzie 

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