theinbetweenismine

just a girl living the expat life

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Archives for May 2019

Monthly Favorites | May

May 30, 2019 filed under: monthly favorites

 

At the end of each month, I share things that have made me happy, new discoveries, or recommendations that I find worthwhile. Enjoy.

1. This dress that I wore to the wedding and communion in Germany (I got it on sale at Macy’s, can’t find a link unfortunately). It’s super-soft, comfortable, and flattering.

2. German bread and rolls. Man, being in the land of bread for 3 weeks did not help my cravings for German breads, in fact, it made it worse. I am so glad I can get some decent bread at the International Market and bake my own rolls.

3. I picked up some new yarn when I was in Germany and I am currently working on a new project with this “Gipfelstürmer*” gradient yarn from 100 Farbspiele.

4. I got a manicure done before I left for my Germany trip and chose this Ella + Mila nail polish* (Honeymoon bliss). Subtle, but pretty.

5. I’ve been using this Bath and Body Works® Aromatherapy Body Lotion* in Orange + Ginger and it smells so good!

6. Everybody and their brother (well, in my case, sister, brother-in-law, niece, nephew, cousin + girlfriend) is wearing Naketano* Sweatshirts/Hoodies right now and since the brand is apparently ceasing production, I wanted to get my hands on one of those comfy sweaters with cuddly collars and thick drawstrings. Too bad I probably have to wait until fall to wear it again.

7. Not sure why Zwieback* is so hard to find in the US (World Market used to carry it, but not anymore), but you can be sure I got two boxes in Germany (at 0.89 € /each, mind you).

What was one of your favorite things this month?

* #notanad, This is not a sponsored post. I have not been compensated by the brand or anyone else for linking the websites.

4

Tuesday Topics: How to survive your first cycling class

May 28, 2019 filed under: fitness, Tuesday Topics

As you know, because I mentioned it a few times here and there, I have recently started going to cycling classes.

What you don’t know is that I had thought about going for months already, always changing my mind last minute and promising myself “next week, you’ll go”, and then I found another excuse to postpone.

The truth is: while I have done cycling workouts before, I haven’t been to a class probably since college and frankly, it’s intimidating to walk into a room full of people you don’t know. Yes, even for a seasoned gym goer.

Here are some tips that have helped me over the hump.

1. GO WITH A FRIEND!

If you can, let a friend drag you along to your first cycling class. I was lucky to get the opportunity to finally go to a cycling class with my friend Tanja (an experienced indoor cyclist) when I visited her in SoCal last month, which made the whole thing a whole lot less intimidating. I still had to go to my second class by myself, but I was already kinda aware of what to expect.

2. PICK A CLASS THAT DOESN’T REQUIRE PRIOR SIGNUP

If you’re taking classes at your gym, check the class schedule and consider taking a class at a day/time that isn’t super-popular (like Sunday mornings at 8 a.m. at my gym). It ensures that you don’t have to sign up beforehand and that it’s not going to be crowded on your first try.

3. SHOW UP EARLY

If you don’t want to walk into a room full of people that you don’t know who turn their heads when you enter, make sure to get to your first class with plenty of time to spare.

You can scope out the room, pick a bike in the back row (where most newbies will feel more comfortable), and get familiar with your bike. It’s easier to be IN THE ROOM when other people walk in, then being the one walking in. And then…

4. SET UP (OR ASK FOR HELP SETTING UP) YOUR BIKE

If you’ve never been on an indoor bike, chances are that you don’t know how to set up your bike. Asking for help might be uncomfortable, because you’re outing yourself as a newbie, but you can’t just hop on any bike and expect the settings to be right for you (most likely they’re not).

If you’re uncomfortable asking for help, you could do a little homework and learn how to set up your indoor bike correctly before you go to class. That will at least give you the chance to appear as if you know what you’re doing.

But most likely though, you don’t have to fret, someone – another participant or the instructor – will notice that you’re new and offer to check your settings for you, and you just accept it with a smile. (Remember: most people are friendly and like to help!)

5. BRING A TOWEL AND WATER

Don’t be that person that walks into an exercise class without a towel and bottle of water. That will out you as a beginner faster than anything else. And trust me: you will need the towel AND the water. Cycling makes you sweaty and thirsty like nothing else. (I am a sweaty person in general, but turns out, I am especially sweaty when I cycle.)

6. DO THE BEST YOU CAN AND HAVE FUN.

Don’t stress about being a newbie. I know, easier said than done, but I promise you, most people are not there to judge you. They have all been in your shoes at some point (even if it doesn’t look like it).

The first class will be a little overwhelming (just know to expect that). Unless it’s specified as a beginner class, you probably won’t get any other instructions on how the class is going to go. The lights will go off, the music will start, the instructor will yell instructions (and you might not know the lingo). Your body is getting used to moving in a new way, there is going to be the beat of the music you’re trying to keep up with, the instructor will give you instructions on when to “increase resistance” and when to “ take the load off”, etc., etc. Just take it all in, but don’t sweat keeping up with everything. This first class is just to get a feel for what it’s like and you should only do what you can comfortably do. Go easy in your first class, don’t push yourself to the limit (or you might never go back!).

Nobody is going to come over to look at your cycle to tell you you’re not working out hard enough. The instructor might try to encourage and push you, but (s)he’s not going to judge your efforts. Cycling class is not a competition, it’s for everybody to have a good, sweaty workout that makes you feel amazing afterwards!

REMEMBER: Everyone, keep your eyes on your own paper bike.

I am linking up again with  Kookyrunner and Zenaida  for Tuesday Topics.

11

Currently | May

May 23, 2019 filed under: currently

FEELING | emotionally jetlagged. I’ve been thinking about writing a whole separate blog post about the phenomenon. It’s so real every time I travel internationally. 

CHERISHING | all the precious memories I made the last few weeks.

TRYING TO | get back into my routine at work and with my workouts. It’s always hard to come back from vacation, but I think it’s also worth it to have that down time where you can just be in the moment and don’t worry about work and routine.

EATING | Mettbrötchen (roll with raw minced pork and onions). Trust me. It’s so good.

DRINKING | peppermint tea.

READING | Maud’s Line by Margaret Verble. I just started this book, because I didn’t get around to reading much while I was in Germany. It’s going to be another slow reading month for me, but at least, I have finally picked up a book again.

WEARING | a new-to-me pair of jeans (my sister and I swapped some clothes while I was there. Do you ever do that?).

NEEDING | lots of coffee right now.

LOOKING FORWARD TO | Memorial Day weekend. It’s a long weekend for us and we’ll be celebrating our anniversary. 

THINKING ABOUT | what I want to buy at the gardening store this weekend. I am planning to get our backyard in shape. 

WORKING ON | a new knitting project. I brought back some new gradient yarn from Germany and I am excited to start a new project.

WATCHING | new episodes of 90-day fiancé. Being an international couple ourselves, it’s interesting to see those couples navigate their relationships. Luckily, ours was never remotely as turbulent as most of these couples’. Oh boy.

What’s going on with you currently? 

4

May Link Love

May 21, 2019 filed under: link love

Around the Interwebs

Master your email with these essential Gmail tips.

Coffee and creamer gradient chart. Which one is yours? (That made me LOL… I am probably an E1 or A5.)

Do not disturb iPhone update.

Signs that need proofreading. LOL

If women completed work based on the percentage of wages compared to men.

Bird’s-eye-view of NYC. It’s art!

What an Olympic medalist, homeless in Seattle, wants you to  know. It’s not what you think.

Where to start if you want to optimize your health. Straight-forward, non-complicated advice.

Instagram is taking away likes.

Around the blogosphere

A no-drama guide to bullet journaling.

Thoughts on shorts & why you should wear them. Yes, yes, yes.

Why food cravings are okay!

Craftiness/DIY

I wish we had an entryway! DIY Free Standing Cabinet Command Center

Free bullet journal printables: the best websites.

DIY refrigerator magnets.

For my runner friends

While I don’t necessarily think that motivation is overrated, this is how I stick to an exercise habit: How to create an exercise habit.

Deliciousness

Bruschetta Chicken Pasta

I’d love to try these: Cauliflower Lentil Cakes.

Homemade baked chicken nuggets.

Share a good link with me in the comments!

4

Tap, tap… is this thing on?

May 20, 2019 filed under: about me, Germany, travel, USA

 

Hi strangers. I am writing to you from the fog that is having your heart split between two worlds.

I just returned from my long-anticipated trip overseas and it was everything that I hoped for and more. But – as always after each visit – I am emotionally hungover and cranky. Saying goodbye to family and friends is hard. You’d think that this kind of thing gets easier with time, but to the contrary. I feel that it’s, in fact, getting harder every time I visit. As much as I love my life here, those visits always show me quite plainly what I am missing out on. 

I tried to be present during my visit. Hence, the lack of blog posts, and only the occasional Instagram update. I usually take advantage of those trips by pretty much completely unplugging from the Internet. It’s nice to not be tied to your phone all the time. My Feedly Reader had 1000+ unread posts upon my return and I honestly could care less  right now. (But no worries, you know me. I’ll try to catch up on all of your lives!)

I had the best three weeks and I am happy to report that I was able to almost check everything off my Germany bucket list. My time was incredibly dense and packed full of love and friendship, which was so needed to recharge my emotional batteries, but going from 60 back to nil is an adjustment, to say the least.

I hope May has been treating you well so far. I am hoping to be back with some recaps and regular posting soon!

10

What I read in April

May 16, 2019 filed under: books

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara (★★★★☆)

Man, this book. I had such a hard time getting through it, partially because it revolved around such a heavy, dreadful topic (abuse, self-harm) and partially because I was frustrated by the plot. The writing itself was beautiful, one of the most beautiful writing I have read, and the parts about the human experience of relationships and friendships simply stunning, but at the same time, the first half of the book dragged for some reason and it was hard to keep track of the chronological order of things and from which perspective the chapters were narrated. It was also incredibly dense.

I still want to give this book a good rating, because man, what a story.

What did you read in April? Anything you’d like to recommend? Leave a comment, and then add me on Goodreads to keep in touch.

 

2

Guest Post | That thing called motivation

May 9, 2019 filed under: fitness, guest blog post

Today, I invited my friend Tanja to take over my blog and help me keep this space alive while I am in Germany visiting family and friends.

Hi, my name is Tanja and I have been living in the US for almost 12 years.

I’m, like San, a German (dual) citizen and met San through the blogosphere where I realized quickly that we have a lot in common. The first time San and I met in real life was 2016. Right away it felt like we had known each other for years. In 2017 San joined me and my mom for a (vacation)day in San Francisco and ever since mom is telling me to say “Hi” to San, whenever we talk.

Just a few weeks ago San flew out to Orange County to spend a whole weekend with me (my husband and doggies) – we had sooo much fun and now I dislike it even more that we don’t live closer to each other.

One thing we have in common is being active. As we all know, San loves to run. Myself, on the other hand, can’t seem to find any joy in running – I tried really hard tho. However, I like to move this body, I like hiking (who doesn’t like the outdoors?) and my indoor spinning class. Lucky me, I also have a little garage-gym where I can work on gaining a bit more strength. And count me in whenever there is a new gym or workout class wich offers a free trial!

I often get asked how I motivate myself to work out as often as I do.

It wasn’t always that way, it actually started just a few years ago, when I realized I have an eating disorder – it’s self-diagnosed and nothing as serious as bulimia. I started my first diet when I was about 11 years old and ever since can call myself the perfect example of yo-yo-dieting (#sarcasmout). Unfortunately, I can’t just have one piece of anything – if you place something/anything in front of me (even if I don’t like it that much) often my, what I call, dog-behavior comes out – I eat it with no hesitation in no time (you can call yourself lucky if you are fast enough to get a piece yourself – lol). So if I give myself the permission to eat a piece of something I might become my own enabler.

Whenever I was “successful” with my diet, it made me not only feel “in control”, also my back started to feel better (I was born with minor back and join issues). Again, it took me years to put one and one together.

However, at one point I realized that I have only one shot at this thing called life and I want to be able to look back at it and say, I did whatever I could to live a fun, adventurous, healthy life. Not sure when it happened or what triggered it.

But ever since, I wanted to do as much as possible to feel good in my own body. While I have good phases regarding my little eating problem, I still have moments where I screw up, big time. However, working out regularly (might) balance this out a bit, at least in my head.

Of course there are days where I don’t feel it at all. I wake up with a headache or feel the back pain more intensely at the end of the day, right before my scheduled spin class. And while it is very important to listen to your body, I personally have come to the realization that I’d rather try my planned workout and stop when it might become too much, instead of not giving it a shot at all. I have too often taken things / aches / pains as an excuse and I don’t want to slip into this behavior again. So, if I’m not crying out in pain (this is of course over exaggerated!!!) I’d rather bite the bullet and give it a try. No shame in stopping midway if it doesn’t get better or feels uncomfortable or even painful. Most of the time a little adjustment and/or alternative movement can also help me get through a workout.

While I always love to give 110 percent, I know my body well enough to understand that sometimes I just can’t give that much. But hey, anything is better than doing nothing…. don’t you agree?!?

Please don’t forget, this is just my own way of getting over my weaker self.

My favorite quote became my mantra: Live the life you love, love the life you live. I got it tattooed on my wrist so I can remind myself whenever it’s necessary.

So the short answer to the question where I find my motivation to workout 5-7 times a week is: I simply want to feel good, until the end of my time!

4

Recipe | Tomato-based spinach tortellini soup

May 3, 2019 filed under: recipe

I raved about the tortellini soup that I’ve been making a few times recently and I thought I would post my tweak from the original recipe that I found on “The Modern Proper”.

What really makes this tortellini stand out, IMHO, is the creamy tomato base.

We lightened up the recipe by using chicken (instead of pork) sausage and I almost always substitute half & half for cream these days (without any loss in flavor that I can tell).

I also pack in veggies when I can, so I tend to use spinach tortellini instead of regular cheese tortellini (but that’s your choice!). This soup can be tweaked to your liking (and even be made vegetarian by omitting the meat, although I do think that it gives it extra flavor and texture).

Anyway, without further I do, my take on the tomato-based tortellini soup.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
1 lbs chicken sausage, ground
1 onion, minced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 quart vegetable stock
1 (14 oz can) crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp salt
10 oz fresh spinach
10 oz spinach tortellini, fresh
1 cup half & half
¼ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)

Heat the olive oil in a large pot (I use my Dutch oven for everything these days!) and add the sausage. Break up and brown the sausage. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes.

Add the vegetable stock, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste and whisk everything together.

Bring to a boil and  simmer for 15 minutes. Then add the spinach, tortellini and season with salt.

Add the half and half and then simmer for 5 minutes until the spinach is wilted and the pasta is cooked through.

Season with red pepper flakes if desired and serve hot!

Tomato-based Spinach Tortellini Soup

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 lb chicken sausage ground
  • 1 onion minced
  • 6 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 quart vegetable stock
  • 1 14 oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 10 oz fresh spinach
  • 10 oz spinach tortellini fresh
  • 1 cup half & half
  • ¼ tsp red pepper flakes optional

Instructions
 

  • Heat the olive oil in a large pot (I use my Dutch oven for everything these days!) and add the sausage. Break up and brown the sausage. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes.
  • Add the vegetable stock, crushed tomatoes and tomato paste and whisk everything together.
  • Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes. Then add the spinach, tortellini and season with salt.
  • Add the half and half and then simmer for 5 minutes until the spinach is wilted and the pasta is cooked through.
  • Season with red pepper flakes if desired and serve hot!

 

0

Hi, I am San – German native, dual-citizen living in beautiful Northern California. Runner. Knitter. Crafter. Reader. Writer. Proud aunt, sister, and friend.

I’ve been blogging since 2004 and don’t intend to stop any time soon. If you are looking for personal content and making a  genuine connection, you’ve come to the right place.

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All content, unless otherwise specified, is original content written and created by me. Stealing is rude. If you want to use any photos or other content, just send me a note and maybe we can work something out. Be sure to credit and link back, if you do take any information from this blog and post it somewhere else. Thank you!

Now, let’s be friends!

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