At the beginning of March, I joined FitFluential’s challenge to run/walk 100 miles in March.  And while I kept my schedule of going to the Y a couple of times a week to run, I also purchased a pedometer to keep track of my daily steps.  I never knew exactly how active I was during the day.  It was definitively a surprise to see my daily steps anywhere between 2 and 3 miles!  While I had many blunders with my Sportline pedometer during the challenge, I’m pleased to announce that I reached my goal of 100 miles in March!  Now that the challenge is over, I’m wishing I had a Jawbone or a FitBit to keep better track.

As  I mentioned before, I’d like to participate in some trail races this year and I intend to get serious about my training just as soon as this nagging cough goes away!  Now that the #FFMarchMiles challenge is over, let me introduce a fun April Instagram challenge by the Tampa Bay Bloggers.

All you have to day is take a daily picture following the daily prompts and tag it with #AprilPics and #TBB.  No prizes this time, just a fun way to meet and follow new peeps!

Another fun thing going on in April is the Ultimate Blog Party starting April 4 – 11.  The #UBP14 is sponsored by the wonderful ladies at 5 Minutes for Mom.  This will be my first time participating in Ultimate Blog Party.  Even if you don’t have a blog you can still participate by meeting and visiting new blogs.

Do you have a FitBit or Jawbone? How do you like it?

Do you have an Instagram account? Do you participate in photochallenges?

Did you know the Bay Area Renaissance Festival has been going on for 36 years? We’ve been wanting to go for years, and finally we were able to go yesterday.  The weather was so nice I knew I wanted to spend the day outside with the family.  After a quick search on google, I found out about the Bay Area Renaissance Festival in Tampa.  So, off to Tampa we headed.  The Bay Area Renaissance Festival is located adjacent to MOSI (Museum of Science and Industry).

This was the girls’ first time attending a Renaissance Festival.  Between all the games and the shopping the girls were definitively not ready to go home.

I was amazed by the amount of vendors and games at this festival.  We got there around 2 pm and did not see everything there was to see.  I suggest you get there early and bring your walking shoes.

As usual, face painting is still a must at any park or festival activity.  Further down, there was a Henna Tattoo tent.  I think next year, they might be asking for those instead.  Oh no.  They really do grow up quick.

I was most exited about attending our First ever Royal Tea with the Queen.  For an additional $15 per person, you could attend the Queen’s Royal Tea Party.  The Tea Party was in a special tent with the Queen’s Court.  We had tea of course, hot or iced.  The Tea party began with a delicious sconce.  We then had the choice of chicken salad or crab salad on a croissant.  And we finished with some delicious bite size cake pieces.  Between the entertainment and the food, I thought it was totally worth it!  We purchased our discounted festival tickets at Walgreens to save $3 before heading to the Festival.  You can also purchase discount tickets online and at Subway.

Do you like attending Renaissance Festivals?

Thanks to my new meal planning approach, dinnertime has been so much easier and tastier.  I’ve got the chance to try out a lot of new recipes like this quick beef chili recipe.  It’s from the January 2014 Southern Living magazine and it packs a lot of flavor.

I’ve finally figured out how to make a “tough” cut of meat taste flavorful and tender.  The secret is to cut the meat into small bite size pieces.  First cut the meat into strips, then cubes.  If the cubes are still too thick, like half an inch or so, turn them on their side and cut them once again.

I made a couple of changes to the recipe.  I’m not a big chipotle fan.  Sorry.  I keep trying it thinking some day I might change my mind, but it just taste smoky to me.  So, I did not add the chipotle chile powder.  It was not missed at all.  I also added 4 cans of chopped green chiles instead of the 5.  My last change was to use the double concentrated tomato paste that comes in the tube instead of the one in the can.  Score.  If you’ve never used it before, I encourage you to try it.  It really adds great flavor to any meal.

This quick beef chili recipe turned out great.  It did take about an hour, but only about 30 minutes is hands-on.  It was the perfect dish for a cool evening thanks to our crazy Florida weather it was in the forties last night.  So excited to have lunch leftovers to take to work today.

 What’s your favorite chili recipe?

Do you like chipotle?