A Court of Cori & Her Little Life [See What I Did There?]

Another off-and-on super rainy day today... *meh.

At one point today, I looked under my desk and realized that the girl who lives there, is way cooler than me. Hah. I really need to take things home, but it made me chuckle at the fact that I could very well introduce myself for the most part, using just the contents beneath my desk. I don't know if that's sad or not, but it's true no less. 

hi, i'm cori.

After work, it was straight to the gym. I've been intentionally silent about the past several months of gym endeavors, mainly because I didn't have anything to say. I'm definitely not an all-the-time gym selfie person, but I came to another milestone tonight and for my own benefit, I need to stop and recognize it. I've admitted to myself that I wasted a lot of time last year avoiding awareness of my body and what it's always been capable of, and just before Thanksgiving last year when I set foot back in the gym for the first time in a couple years, I promised myself I wouldn't ever let it get to a point where I was starting over, again, like I pretty much am now. 

With that being said, I pushed myself a little further tonight, just to the edge - just to that fine line before I sacrificed form for safety - I don't cross that line. I was able to bump up weights in a few areas and felt like my bum shoulder [and its metal plate & 9 screws] was actually ready and willing to go along with me tonight. I still look like a Maple tree trunk with twigs for arms, but the goal is to balance that out by Summer, and I am dead set on that happening. 

one day at a time ♥

 AND, I finished ACOMAF! [A Court of Mist and Fury]

photo cred: instagram @queen.aelin.galathynius

I borrowed this shot from an Insta user because it's beautiful, and as I closed ACOMAF tonight, I realized that this was, for me, one of the most poignant chapters in the entire book. It's the only chapter seen through Rhysand's eyes, and the way that author has built these characters into the iron-clad, devastatingly loyal family that they are, is heartbreaking in a way. Between Lord of Shadows and A Court of Wings and Ruin both coming out in May, I'm not sure which one I'm more excited to have maybe not or maybe definitely already pre-ordered. As of tonight, I'm kind of leaning towards ACOWAR. 

OH, and ya'll were definitely right; Tamlin's not all he's cracked up to be. Rhysand on the other hand... :) 

Happy almost hump day! 

xo | cms 

Refreshed

Every so often, there comes a day when my skin feels especially like my own, and I feel an added amount of gratitude for it. Today was one of those days. I'm not really sure what it was, other than that God knows the things I need, when I need them.

24 jan 2017

I was in the middle of a midday decompression (aka, lunch hour), and caught myself in the mirror of a dressing room for what felt like the first time at all today. The vertical mirror lights reflected off my eyes and for a split second, it registered that I looked very cat-like. I laughed and took a selfie, because that's what you do in those situations, right?

It wasn't until almost 6 hours later that I finally posted the thing, and the response I got was a quick but real reminder of how the encouragement I needed would come from a handful of strong, empowering women that I have the privilage to know in both real life and through their social media feeds. Another friend from years gone by also surfaced - one who, as part of an even smaller collection of people, stood by me through some of my weirdest years in college, as I grappled with my identity as an adopted Asian-American. It's not to say that I don't feel good on other days, but even with compliments and positivity trickling back in, I felt as humbled as ever by the notion that a simple selfie could prompt others to speak words of light and positivity.

That's what it is, really. It's the constant flow of negative energy that has clouded my social media feeds. It's the uncertainty for our future that weighs on our shoulders - some more visibly than others. It's the division that we see broadcasted across the country, and the fear that we try our best to swallow or ignore, that we are as a country, heading towards complete and absolute self-implosion. It's those thousands of voices that creep into my head when I least expect them to, and I start to lose sight of my own course and the one true voice of reason that really matters.

I went to the gym with this newly-recovered momentum of confidence, and was approached by another person to share the circuit I was doing. I gladly did so, since it had been shared once with me. Another encouraging moment. I finished an exhausting workout and headed home to a protein bar, dinner and my Bible:

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. ::2 Timothy 1:7::

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. ::1 Thessalonians 5:11::

I know this entry is a bit all-over, but as I've said a dozen times before - I love ya'll, but these entries are as equally for my own reference at any given point tomorrow or next year, when I need to be reminded of where my feet and heart stood at any particular time.

And today I feel refreshed. A little lighter in body, heart, soul and mind. A little stronger. A little better than I was yesterday, and a little more confident that I am empowered to be empowering. My hope is that each of you beautiful people out there can find the same peace, and then share it in your own world.

Good Night!
xo | cms

Cable Work ;)

Here's the exact three stages of my gym time today: 

1: SUPER READY LET'S GO BECAUSE GAINS DON'T HAPPEN IF I STAY HOME ON THE COUCH! 

and also, who's coming with me?!

2: Doing the work. This is one of my favorite little burners, and although I kinda lost count during the video, I would recommend doing at least 3 sets, with 10 walking out and 10 walking back. Deep squat and try to keep your back straighter than I did here :p. The resistance band makes me concentrate on not letting my knees bow in or my feet lance out, and the ankle weights are there because I forgot to take them off before I started. Yes, they look silly and no I don't care....

3: Two hours later, after my legs have sworn off the rest of my body and I almost wrecked twice going home because said legs were too tired to drive...

this is standard for me.

I don't usually post gym-related things, but after just a couple months, I'm feeling the results of what I've done so far, and I'm not about to stop there. But yeah, I'm wiped. ZzZ. 

xo | cms

It Is What I Make It!

I have a traditionally long-standing love-hate relationship with Monday. I know I'm not alone. 

One of my staff called off today, so the first thing that welcomed me was the unexpected re-arrangement of original plans, postponed until tomorrow. There's nothing quite like an 8AM surprise like that..

(Can we?) 

Since I know that answer is no, I do what the rest of us do: grin & choose to make the best of what is in front of me. And today, that was MONDAY. The good news though, is that in the middle of the madness, we were able to coordinate a FULL HOUR [saywhatomg?!] for lunch, for each of us today. That's saying a lot, because around here, that's not a real thing, so when we're able to indulge ourselves for the full hour, it's a nice change of pace. 

lunch break!

After work, I checked the work load at the door and headed out to pick up my favorite little shopper's assistant: 

notice the sign back there: they're real! :D

Monday evenings at our house are usually uneventful, and tonight thankfully followed suit. We spent the evening being present with each other, and I realized in our little living room that I have everything I need in this rocky little thing called life. My day was challenging, but at the end of it, I'm home, in our house, with my family. It's a side note, but I feel like a drop of gratitude doesn't hurt, especially on a Monday. I have not earned these things, and I do not deserve them.. and I am wholly thankful for them. 

And I am also thankful for the second season of Shadowhunters, which allots for an hour of my Monday evening each week for the next 11-12 weeks now. Tonight we finally got to see MAIA!

maia roberts | alisha wainwright

Yes, yes, YES GIRL.

Oh, and to top it off, after small fry went to bed, Mama got up and went to the gym. I have no idea what came over me, other than that I am fully determined to get back to my college soccer body. I'm not sure if I'll come out on the other side as exactly that, but I'm gonna be close. 

it's not much, but we're workin' on it... #shoulderday

Whew. It's late, I'm tired, and tomorrow is Tuesday. 

Ciao! 

xo | cms

Work. Oh, Yeah, That Too :)

 My picking this book up is Britta's fault. I want to share the spoilers with everything and everyone within earshot, because I love it so much. Today, I purposefully toted it to work with me, and enveloped myself in a half hour of stillness on my lunch break to continue reading. I'm nearly finished, which makes me sad in its own way, but it's a familiar feeling I have with so many of my favorite books.

lunch break reads♥

With work checked off the day's list, it was time to get home and get back to the gym.
I haven't worked out since 2016. [heheh..] < It's corny, I know, and we're in the first month of not 2016, but the sinus infection that I had last week would've made for quite the scene of me wheezing and eventually/inevitably either passing out or vomiting all over the equipment. BUT, now I'm back, feeling my face again [which is a relic I don't appreciate until it's impossible to do, I've realized], and ready to get back on track with the task of hunting down all.ze.gains. ALL ZE GAINS.

cashed.

Whhhheeew. I'm spent. Not a bad way to end hump day.
We're on the home stretch now - two more days til the weekend! :)

xo | cms

Weekends Should Start Happy

Typical Friday: busy, crazy and completely stripping of all that I had left in the tank for workplace energy [& etiquette, if I'm being real]. This week was due for a trade-in. My receptionist was out today, which added a bit of additional delegated work to the two of us who were in, so when we suggested skipping lunch and just leaving an hour early, it was received surprisingly well, and that was that: Kristin & I out the door at four. Thanks, Paul! 

home at 4:30, out to run at 4:45.
yep, i'll take it! 

Rob and I had this crazy idea that we'd go on a dinner date [okay that's not the crazy part], but that we'd additionally go to a movie afterwards. 

It's like we don't know ourselves sometimes, haha. Dinner it was, and instead of a theater, we opted for a stroll through the park to check out the Memorials, some late evening tennis matches and this gorgeous sunset:

milford, oh

Much better than a theater, any day. 

And this: 

*tears.

I am. SO. Ready for the weekend. I don't care what we do, when we do it, or why we do it, as long as we DON'T do it before 8:30am. 

I'm sleeping in tomorrow if I have to shut myself in the closet to make it happen.. haha. 

G'Nite, loves & TGIF! 

xo | cmd

Bright Eyes, Beats & Box Jumps

I started off today in a way that I've never done before: Working out at CYOFL with Jessica!

If you don't know what CYOFL is, it's Create Your Own Finish Line, owned and operated by the one and only Jessica G! She's hardcore when it comes to fitness, but not in the maniacal way that you'd think. This girl is all about working everything, from the inside out, so the details that will ultimately make or break your body don't go overlooked: posture, form, balance, flexing, stability muscles, breathing... all of it. I don't have enough good things to say about this girl's work, but if you feel inclined to check her out, you should totally DO IT!

let's do it! 

I'll even make it easy for you: CLICK HERE to see it on Facebook!

Anyway, I arrived and we got started, with some trampoline running, planks, pull ups, TRX, deadlifts and of course.. box jumps. My personal favorite :) 

That is not a bad way to start off the day; I will say that.
I'll say this: nothing kick starts a day like a workout, especially when you're in the right company, with the right music, and of course the right exercises to kick your butt! ;)

Today = Owned.
Tomorrow? Bring it On. ♥

xo | cmd

Seeester & Nieeeester Birthdays | Hickies!

If you read that title, you're immediately asking what HICKIES have to do with... whatever the rest of that supposedly says.

I'll start from the beginning:

TODAY is my dear sister's birthday!
It is ALSO her daughter Cynthia's birthday, because they are special that way and share the same birthday! I think it's pretty daggone cool ♥

♥♥ happy birthday, beauties!! ♥♥

Today was gorgeous. The sun was out all day, but wasn't scorching. Elisa and I made a mini trip out on lunch to Michael's and Fusion, where we made a celebrity spotting of President Ono! [If you don't know who that is.... his first name (for real) is Santa, and I'll leave it up to you to see why he's a person of much-deserved respect here in our community.]

santa ono 

He is pretty freakin' awesome. Let's just be honest. I'm proud to be an alumni of UC, based on his presence there alone... even if he wasn't the president when I was there. Let's not split hairs ;).

I stayed a little later at work than I typically would, but felt accomplished for it and headed home with just enough extra oomph to get myself changed and ready for the gym. It didn't hurt that I'd bought these a week or so back.. and they arrived today!

my new hickies!

^ Funky name, awesome invention. I put them on a trial run for tonight's workout, and won't be looking back to traditional laces anytime soon. Thumbs up to these guys on an awesome little hack that I'll be sporting for the rest of my gear, if at all possible!

At home, Rob made a quick sell off some Craigslist postings; he's all about divesting extra stuff for the Summer, and I'm pretty happy with that choice, too. He also managed to get the front yard mowed, along with a few other miscellaneous things; I got dinner reared up and tackled a few planning things for a certain special date in 2016 ;)..

Needless to say, it's been a successful Monday. See you tomorrow!

xo | cmd

My BiPolar City

Here's the course of a typical day here in Norwood [& really, in all of Cincinnati]:

8:00 AM. 

10:00 AM

11:00 AM

11:15 AM

1:45 PM

3:45 PM

Get the drift? 

If there's one thing you've got to accept and not fight living in the midwest, it's the weather. Seriously. We're about as close to bipolar as you can get without professional intervention. 

Fortunately, I have a collection of a few thousand of my closest friends here in Cincinnati who get the joy of suffering through all of this together. 

Now PICK ONE, CINCI. 

xo | cmd

Grown-Up Calamity Days? Nope. :/

Guess who got all dressed up today, and then had nowhere to go?

rub it in.. just ruuuub it in, kiddo.. haha

It was a cold one today. When it's this cold, the kiddos don't go to school. I'm know I'm not the only one who remembers this happening in my childhood just about ... NEVER.

Guess who got to spend a large part of her afternoon traipsing through the remnants of this beautiful weather? [Although said she didn't actually mind it.... ]

i love my job! ♥  

With the snow overflowing out of my wheel wells [& just about everywhere else in the city], I voted for a change of pace for the evening; instead of bundling up, I went a few layers lighter for a quick circuit at the gym with Rob beforewe decided on dinner. The snow had set in heavy by the time we wrapped up at the gym, so at the last minute it was decided that we'd stop somewhere on the way home:

nom nom nom

Phew.
It's still snowing! I imagine this will be fun in the morning, so I'm calling it a night for now.. Be SAFE out there, blogbots!!

xo | cmd

Headaches & Creampuffs

1. I'm getting old. Okay, maybe it's not so much that as it is the fact that I am not nearly conditioned as I ought to [still] be. My work as a Clydesdale yesterday, hauling Sydni back up the sledding hill on her sled about ten times caught up with me first thing this morning, in the form of a muscle migraine that wouldn't relent until about 8:30 tonight. [Awesome. :/ ]

notes to self.

So there's that. I spent the day curled up in a sedentary ball on the couch, absorbing a few hours of cartoons as Sydni patiently [bless this child, seriously] passed the time her mama was out of commission by coloring some gorgeous pictures as a healing offering. I have the sweetest girl, ever. At one point, she disappeared to the kitchen and returned with a bottle of Smart Water:

"I brought this for you Mommy, because sometimes when I have a headache, I just need water and then I feel all better.. so this can help you feel all better." 

Really? What I have done to deserve this girl's love?  I almost cried. I hugged her and told her that I promised to make up this lost weekend time as soon as my head would allow; she didn't seem phased at all, but rather tucked the blanket around me and told me she would color a pretty picture for me to feel better. I'm proud. Humbled. Amazed. Thankful. ♥♥♥

I am also thankful for my fiancé, who dealt with my lame existence today, and even took it upon himself to tend to the dishes, laundry, light house cleaning, dogs and Sydni while I was busy in my disoriented state of self-pity. He deserves accolades far more often than I openly acknowledge; he is my hero in more ways than one. [Thank you, Rob ♥]

I was awake but still belittled with a migraine when Becky made a last-minute appearance; she came bearing cream puffs from one of the newest potential Findlay vendors:

you serious, right now? 

Dangit, Becky! These things were delicious!
^^ Sometimes I want to loathe her for the things she subjects me to eating. Haha. She made up for the introduction of these decadent things by entertaining mini for part of the time she was there. As soon as she came through the door, she was greeted with, "MISS BECKYYYYY!!!!"

syd loves this lady! 

Miss Becky's a favorite character in this house, that's for sure :)
We made a trade: two creampuffs in exchange for the extra crockpot we had stowed away in a cabinet. Fair enough, right? Haha.. Becky left for the evening and it was time for us all to retire the weekend.

hello? 

^^ Jesse being here for the weekend warranted Sydni's bed fort being taken down so he could use the room without clothes-lining himself in the middle of the night. This was not a Sydni-approved move, so tonight, it was a mosh pit of stuffed animals that did the trick of warding off all the scary shadows and whatnot. My little bug sure does have an imagination [which will greatly benefit her later in life]; we're still working on debunking the kid-myths of bed monsters goblins ;).

#worksinprogress.

Good night, from us to you!

xo | cmd

"You Can Have Both, Mommy."

Kids, man. They are the absolute best source of practical wisdom, and Sydni is no exception.

Tonight I was reminded by two very simple moments that this is a beautiful, albeit chaotic little life we live. We have so many liberties that we take for granted, and she managed to remind me in ways she won't recognize until years from now, that I have it made.

First, this:

nutella + graham crackers... minion graham crackers

Kids have the most reactive metabolisms, especially if they're regularly healthy like Sydni. She plowed through a quarter of a box of minion graham crackers and spoonfuls of Nutella to go along, more than a "snack" portion, but without ruining her dinner. The kid usually makes healthy choices on her own, but we happened to be out of grapes and apples today, so I took the blame and gave in to her cravings for this... just once, yenno? ;) 

Anyway, the mini feeding frenzy passed without much further attention, and an hour later I heard the familiar whirring of the elliptical in the basement, so I went down to check on her. I kid you not, Sydni went hard on this thing for at least 30 minutes straight, until I told her to take a little break. I asked her, jokingly, if she was training to get big and strong and fast so she could outrun Mommy, to which she whimsically replied, "Nope. I'm essercising because I just ate a whole bunch of crackers and nutella."

Now, before anyone jumps to conclusions about how my daughter perhaps believes that you must push yourself to physical limits every single time you eat [or any other unhealthy psychological deliverance], she doesn't. She has never [amen, amen, AMEN] cared what she ate, knows that the Disney girls look "weird" with their unrealistically-proportioned bodies, and doesn't usually tell me she's using the elliptical for the same reasons an adult uses the elliptical. Haha. No. She's 5, and it was perfectly in line with her goofy little personality for her to say that. What she has learned in our house is that exercise is good, and that if you do it, you will stay healthy and be able to do all the things you want to do: swimming, running around, playing tag, etc. That was long-winded, but I just don't want anyone out there to mistake this as a reflection that we hang around teaching her that she'll get fat if she doesn't work out. We're all about healthy and happy in this house, not just one or the other ♥ 

Thank you, though, mini-me, for reminding me that there's balance to this. It might not make sense to you yet, and I absolutely read into these two simple things tonight, but it struck me as a subtle little note to be aware of balancing out - whatever it is, be sure to get all that I need, not just one side of something. You're such a great little teacher, mini! 

"You can have both, Mommy."
Yep, we can. We can have work and play. Fun and responsibility. Plans and free time. 

Duh! 

xo | cmd

[Well That's Just] INSANITY

Before I get into the meat of this entry, this is a dedication for Ali:

If you are reading this and in a spot today where you need a little encouragement, I hope maybe that helps. I know my friends are each irreplaceable for their own reasons, and I'm grateful to have them as support. I hope I can be an equally-supportive shoulder for each of them when it's needed, too! So Ali - chin up, dear friend.. it all happens for a reason. Love you!

This also seemed appropriate, in the spirit of supporting others, and because it's just. so. daggone COLD out there! [thank you, Facebook!]

Wouldn't it be amazing if we all DID this?! #Dreamer

Anywho, my day consisted of the standard whirlwind of work, after which I headed home thinking it would be straight to the kitchen for dinner. Instead, Rob surprised me with suggesting we open up and dig into my copy of Insanity.

I said, well... OKAY! :D

I will take the standard "body shots" for the before & after records a little later on; tonight was just the fit test :)

insanity... rawwrr!! 

Stay tuned! We'll be bustin' out of winter clothes just in time for summer fun haha.. Maybe. Cheer for us in the meantime, ok? :p

xo | cmd

Christmas Eve!

It has been such a whirlwind of a week; I was more than happy to oblige the day off to hang out with my girl ;)

We ran a few final errands, which included delivering this bad boy [which is a day late in completion, but fortunately this one time, it's ok.. phew!]:

it's done!! happy birthday, andrew! 

Happy, HAPPY birthday, Andrew! I hope you love it! :)
I finally, finally, finally finished this thing, which took about three days longer than I'd anticipated, along with an entire extra skein of wool. Passing it along to Jessica for its actual gifting was both a relief and a loss; I've poured so much into this thing that it's bittersweet to see it go, but that's the life of crafting, I know... c'est la vie...

We dropped by Jess' studio to hand-deliver this bad boy, and caught her at the tail end of a client session. Sydni then had the chance to explore the likes of a fitness studio, and even got a quick sesh from its owner and personal trainer.

adorable. look at that form! ;) 

spartan in the making... 

OR....

aerial yogi in the making? ;) 

Hehehe... she's a gym lover! [Nope, not her mama's kid at all, huh... ;) pshhhh!]
We finished up with Jess and were on our way to complete a few errands and head home.

Workouts are exhausting, I'll give ya that, Syd:

zonked! 

Back at home, we relaxed into the evening and just before bedtime did our final preparations for the BIG day tomorrow. Santa has a lot of work to do, so we wanted to make sure he's properly fed and watered on his stop through here. She was so sweet!

come get 'em, santa! 

My sweet girl!! She just went down for the night, and I think it's high time we follow suit, so that we're not interrupting Santa's neighborhood route tonight.

See you then!

xo | cmd

[Belated] Birthday Continued

I honestly don't feel any different now that I'm the "big 3-0." Frankly, it's probably due in large part to the fact that for the past what... 4 [at least]  months now have led up to culminating weekends, gifts and surprises that I can't believe came my way.

It's been a pretty busy week around here, but my team managed to pull together an office birthday gig for me, despite us all being right under each other's noses for 8 hours a day. I had no idea, but it was the perfect final touch to the week and cap on our traditional Friday office lunch.

oooh! ♥

Lunch came in from Habits Cafe in Oakley, and dessert came from one of my favorite places in this neighborhood: Whole Foods!

cupcaaaaaakes! 

you guys are the best! :D

Elisa, Carri & Dave - THANK YOU for all of this today!! You guys sure know how to make a girl feel appreciated :). We're like our own little family here; we don't always like each other, but I'm so thankful for each of them and what they bring to the table. ♥

At home, it seemed like the birthday celevration just wouldn't stop. I took the leftover cupcakes home [duh], and Jessica came by for dinner. THIS girl... did a PSA on holiday fitness this morning on Channel 19, and sheeeee... nailed it. She hadn't seen the clip yet, so Rob hooked up the projector and put about 400 inches of Jessica on the wall for her. Haha..

oh heeeeey jess! 

Oh, and yes... they're gone now:

done & done! 

:)

Happy weekend, blogbots!

xo | cmd