What's Up Wednesday (On a Sunday): July 2016

I was so busy this week that I completely forgot that it was the last Wednesday of the month. So since I don't have anything truly "blog worthy" for this week, this post will serve as my weekly post even though it's a few days late!

What we're eating this week:
Since it's so hot outside, I'm trying to find things that can be grilled outside or cooked in the crock pot. I've got pork chops for the grill and chicken for the crock pot. I'm going to make sour cream chicken....Mr. B loves that recipe. My parents sent us home with a ton of veggies from their garden, so we'll be cooking those this week, too. I have 2 new recipes up on my recipe page: strawberry cheesecake fruit salad and apple pie!

What I'm reminiscing about:
Mr. B and I just celebrated our 6th anniversary on the 17th of this month. I can't believe it's already been 6 years of amazing with this man. We've had some trying times in those six years, but we've had more wonderful times. I feel so blessed and lucky to be able to do life with this amazing man!

July 17, 2010

July 17, 2016

What I'm loving:
I've got some go-to products for my face during the summer. I keep makeup extremely minimal during these summer months. Sometimes I forgo it all together. However, when I do want a little something I use my Younique BB Cream and body bronzer to give my face a smooth, even tone. Younique tinted lip bon bons are the perfect thing for my lips. They give them moisture and just a hint of color. The perfect natural summer look.

What we've been up to:
We just got back from vacation last week. I dedicated a whole post to our Del Rio Vacation!

What I'm dreading:
OK, so party of me is "dreading" this only because I will no longer have the ability to sleep whenever I want. That's my disclaimer....going back to school. I'm excited about my new opportunities this school year, but I'm not looking forward to long days and short nights. You know, living for the weekend every week. I'm going to miss my naps.

What I'm working on:
My classroom. I officially started working on it this past Friday. That will be my project this whole week. I have this thing every school year where I must have my room completed before I officially have to return to work. For me, that's a whole week earlier than usual this year since I'm a new teacher to the district. My official start date is the 8th. That's next week! This week is going to be a long week with 12+ hour days getting my room perfect for my incoming third graders.

What I'm excited about:
OK, this may seem like a contradiction, but....going back to school! I'm excited about teaching third grade. I've been wanting third grade since I student taught in that grade back in 2009. I've interviewed for that grade level about 3 times since then, but have had no luck until this year. I hope I enjoy it as much as I have always thought I would. I'm excited we will have ample technology in our classrooms so that I can use all the stuff I've learned so far. I'm just excited about all the possibilities there are working with older children. Who knows? This could lead me to wanted to teach even older children like so many people have told me I should do......
I'm excited for my new school. It's quite a bit different than I'm used to, but I'm ready for the challenge. This will be my 8th year in the profession, so it's time to get out of my comfort zone and push myself to new places.

What I'm watching/reading:
I'm not watching anything different than I have been this summer. I'm excited about the Olympics coming up this weekend. I enjoy swimming and gymnastics. I can be persuaded to watch some beach volleyball, too. I have been reading quite a bit lately. I picked back up on my "Shade of Vampire" series. If you get too far behind, you'll struggle to catch up. She puts out a new book like every month it seems. Then she has a couple of spin-off trilogies from the series, too. Good thing they are quick reads. I read 2 yesterday alone.

What I'm listening to:
Nothing new or notable......

What I'm wearing:
Still wearing workout clothes or maxi dresses....at least for the next week. Then it's back to business casual. Bring on the Palazzo pants!

What I'm doing this weekend:
I'll be working in my room and watching the Olympics. Super exciting stuff for my last weekend of break, right!?

What I'm looking forward to next month:
Just starting school and seeing my new students. It's going to be a shock working with bigger kids. I think a part of me is going to miss my little first graders.
I'm also looking forward to going back to CG. We've taken a couple of weeks off. Tomorrow is going to be brutal. I had to take it easy the previous 2 weeks before that due to my oral surgery. Then I went and took a full blown 2 weeks off! I'm going to pay for that this week.

What else is new:
You've probably already heard about it.....

Del Rio Vacation 2016

Well, we're back from our nice long vacation. We had so much fun spending time with my family. Here's a little about what went on in my blogging absence.....

The Thursday before we left, Mr. B hit his 100th check-in with CG. Mark and Pam came out to do a 5AM workout just for Cooper (because they love him better than me;) It's always fun to workout with friends. Due to our vacation, we didn't workout at all that next week except for some swimming in the lake a couple of days. We brought our mats and weights with good intentions of working out, but we just couldn't escape the lazy vacation vibes.

Before we left, I needed to get my sweet fur babies groomed because they looked homeless. They were going to spend the week with their buddy, Duke! They needed to look presentable. 

This is how my dogs spent their vacation....

I called up my mom on Friday for some last minute trip details. I was super lucky because I got to Face Time with my Chunky Dunky!!!!

Aunt Lee Lee just couldn't wait until the next day to talk to her baby

Since we would be out of town with family on our actual anniversary, Mr. B and I celebrated on that Friday. We went to our favorite spot, Sundance Square, and ate at Simply Fondue. Thank you Groupon for an affordable price. This has become our "go-to" fancy dining establishment. We used to be fans of Texas de Brazil until they quit sending BOGO coupons. We aren't rich enough to pay full price. Same goes for Simply Fondue. Hence, the Groupon.

Me and my love headed to dinner....Side note: I was thrilled to see that my fedora looked good with my short hair cut!

I snapped this picture of the cheese fondue course to show my mom. She didn't really know what we were enjoying when I told her of our plans. I would've taken a picture of the other courses, but I was too busy enjoying them to bother. #sorrynotsorry

This is the Fontina cheese fondue. We don't like any cheese fondue with a beer base....just don't taste good. This is one of two cheese fondues without it

Since we told them we were celebrating our anniversary, they brought out this complimentary cheesecake drizzled in chocolate and caramel sauce. We dipped it in our white chocolate snickerdoodle fondue. Yeah......

We grabbed one more picture together after dinner

We left early Saturday morning to head to Del Rio. It was a 6 hour drive for us. As usual, I made Mr. B drive. I detest long driving. We arrived shortly after 1:00 that afternoon. We enjoyed a chill afternoon with family before enjoying a home-cooked meal by my Aunt Ann. Sunday, she made us breakfast. Actually, she made us breakfast everyday except Tuesday because I made breakfast for everyone. We went to church before heading to Rudy's for a BBQ lunch. When we got back, Mr. B and I took our annual anniversary selfie on their front porch with the dessert lake view behind us (which you can't see due to the angle we used, but trust us....it's there)

Lucky for us we were already dressed in our Sunday best for our picture

I do believe I have a very handsome husband:)

You know I've got to share several Jude pictures since he's so adorable.....

He was obsessed with this wheel barrow....he was also obsessed with the chickens, rocks, coasters, and riding his truck up and down the ramp

Aunt Lee Lee was so happy to get a smiling picture with her chunky

He also had some chill time with Uncle C

I don't even have words to describe this picture.....he was getting ready for his very first ride on the boat

Tuesday was my aunt's birthday. I made sausage cream cheese crescent rolls and eggs for breakfast. Every morning we would start our day with a cup of coffee on the porch. Later that afternoon, my cousin came by to take us out on the lake. Everyone took this trip except my aunt and uncle. I think they used this as an opportunity to rest from their house guests.

No, that's not a sunburn. There's a red canopy overhead creating the sunburn illusion....

We always look forward to riding the inner tube out on the lake. Cousin Tim always gives good rides. This year, he pulled us behind his speed boat instead of the pontoon. That was a wild ride. He lives for flipping people off the tube. Mr. B went first. He got flipped a couple of times. My sister went next. She, too, got flipped a couple of times. I went next. However, I rode with Jude so I could have a nice gentle ride. Well, they made me put Jude back on the boat so I could have the wild ride. I insisted that I did not want to ride on my stomach and that I would ride on my knees. Bad mistake. I wasn't on for 15 seconds before I was hollering for them to stop because my legs felt like they were being beat with a baseball bat. I surrendered to riding on my stomach. I was a champ. It took forever for him to throw me off. I actually told him to stop and that I give up before the "great fall." I almost convinced him to pull me ashore until my mean spirited sister (who wasn't even planning on being on this trip) told him "Go, go, go! Flip her over!" So, off went the boat. He pulled out every trick to finally get me to flip off. When I did, it hurt so bad. I skipped like a rock across that water and my nose was burning from all the water that went up it. Then, I had to be towed back to the pontoon boat. That was a challenge. It you faced the boat, you had water constantly coming at your face. If you had your back to the boat, you had to fight with the inner tube. I'm telling you, trying not to drown counted as my exercise that day.

After the tube flipping

We spent some time just swimming around the boat. As usual, it took me a few minutes to build up the courage to just jump in. I don't do well in large bodies of water. I prefer the controlled enviroment of the swimming pool.

Even Chunky Dunky got in on the swimming action....he, too, was a little unsure about that big body of water

That evening, we went to our favorite Mexican food restaurant, Memos, for my Aunt's birthday. I had some really tasty nachos. We spent Wednesday out on the lake. Thursday we hung out at the house while Mr. B went fishing with Tim. 

How we started every morning....coffee on the porch. The gulf breeze blowing while you sit out and look on the dessert lake view. Then you go inside and enjoy a good breakfast and another cup of coffee. Many K-Cups lost their lives on this trip.

We played some games on our trip. Dominoes were a favorite of most. Jude loved dominoes. He wanted to be in my lap to help me play. We finally decided to put him in his chair and give him his own dominoes to play with. I think he was satisfied.

We headed to Lubbock on Friday morning. We spent the day just hanging out and running errands. I even went to Walmart with my mom......

During bath time, Mr. B took over bath duties. This picture was too cute not to share.

Saturday was my grandpa's 85th birthday party. We headed to Andrews where my aunt was throwing him a birthday party. It was such a great time. It was like a family reunion. All papa's siblings came. All but one of my granny's siblings came. Papa's wife's children came. He also had a few nieces and nephews come. Most of papa's grandchildren were able to make it and all 3 of his boys. It must be a great honor to have so many people travel great distances to celebrate your life. Us grandkids had to bring our favorite snack we remember having with papa. I chose Moonpies. Papa was a huge fan of the "midnight snack." Everyone shared their favorite memory of them with papa.

My memory: Papa always let us paint his toenails. We loved to paint fingernails and toenails as little girls. Granny let us paint her long nails, and papa was such a good sport and let us do his toenails. I remember they had just got new carpet in their living room when Granny said, "Don't you get any of that polish on the new carpet." Well, guess what I did? Yep! I dribbled a bit on the carpet. So I did what any little girl would do in that situation....I found a paper grocery sack and covered it up. I don't know if they ever discovered that tiny spot......

Amanda and I also shared a memory of Sundays after church. We insisted that Papa and Granny take us to the convenient store to get cheese sticks. If there weren't any, well we had a come apart.

Amanda shared a memory of when Papa came home from work, we always begged him to go up on the roof to adjust the antenna so we could get Fox 34 cartoons. Just some background info: they lived in the middle of nowhere in Seagraves, TX. That's about 75 miles, or so, from Lubbock. You really had to work to receive those Lubbock channels. This was the early 90's so.....

My sister managed to snag a good pic of me and Papa at his party. He didn't want to take it at that moment because he was busy eating a strawberry. We interrupted him....

Here is our immediate family with Papa: Amanda, mom, dad, Papa, me, Mr. B, Elizabeth, Jude

This is all the people that were there from my Granny's side of the family!

Mr. B and I went to church with my parents and had lunch with them on Sunday before heading back home. As you can see, my lounging buddy, Harley, was glad to be back in his rightful spot.

We had such a great time this last week. It's not often that I get to spend such an extended time with my parents. We loved both our smaller vacations this summer. I can hardly believe that it's almost time to go back to work.....

A Few of My Favorite Things

Since my weeks are pretty boring, this week's post will consist on some of the things I'm loving right now. We're leaving for vacation on Saturday morning, so not sure if I'll get another post in before then. 

NEW SHOES!!!

So, to celebrate my 100th check-in with CG, I treated myself to new tennis shoes. Apparently, they were much needed. The ones I had been wearing were worn out and no good. I decided on these Brooks. I've worn them twice. I already love them. They feel good and they're a super fun color! I used to get excited for high heels, now I'm all about tennis shoes:)

FUN TANKS!!!

Summer time is here, so I'm wearing tanks to workout in. You know, I've got to put those muscles that I've been working hard for on display for the masses. I got this fun tank from a friend who owns her own fitness studio. I just loved the saying since it described me perfectly. I have a couple more on the way from Milk and Honey Tees. 

Pardon the up close and personal view.....

PROTEIN PANCAKES!!!

I am in constant search for my ways to get protein in my diet. These pancakes are so good. They have 14 grams of protein for 3-6 inch pancakes. I serve them up with some yogurt butter and 4 egg whites with turkey sausage crumbles for a protein-packed breakfast.

This big box is at Costco for $11.99

PROTEIN COOKIES!!!

These cookies are a perfect pre-workout snack before my early AM workouts. I can't eat a full breakfast before a workout, so I eat half this cookie. It's carb heavy (carbs are appropriate for pre-workout, protein after workout). There are many flavors that I love. Sprouts has the best deal on them.

ENERGY DRINK!!!

4:15 comes early in the morning, so I need a boost to help me power through my workout. I have to be picky because a lot of stuff makes me sick. I'm thrilled that this works for me and doesn't make me sick when I workout. This paired with my cookie is the perfect pre-workout combo!

COFFEE!!!
We discovered this beauty when we were in Austin. Mr. B's family had this coffee at their house. I found these bottles at Target on sale for $8.99. It's concentrated coffee, so you dilute it with water. There are different flavors: caramel, mocha, vanilla, original. I like my coffee cold in the summertime, so this is perfect for me. I add 2 packets of Splenda and a splash or original coffee creamer to mine and drink with my breakfast.

BODY BUTTER!!!

This has been a life saver since my epic sunburn a couple of weeks ago. I'm still peeling from it. I've used almost the whole tub of this. It moisturizes my skin and reduces the peeling. I have to use it about twice a day. It smells good, too. I bought this at Ulta.

FACE PRODUCTS:

This is my go-to face regimen this summer. I don't wear a lot of makeup during summer time, so these two give me a flawless summer glow. The BB Flawless cream goes great by itself, too. If I'm wanting a little more color, I combine the two. The body bronzer is perfect for the rest of your body to give it that summer glow. I love using it on my legs. It's like makeup for your body! 

NO MORE UNDER EYE BAGS!!!

I use a few drops of this serum under my eyes each night. I suffer from dark circles and puffy bags. This helps reduce them significantly when I use it on a regular basis. It only takes a little.

LIP COLOR!!!

I know I've talked about these before, but they're so awesome. They make your lips soft and give just a hint of color. I love throwing this on my lips with my BB cream/bronzer combo mentioned above. This gives me the perfect natural look for summer. 

PLANNERS!!!

I got my Erin Condren teacher planner and notebook in for this school year! I used one for the first time last year, and I LOVED it! The notebook is new to me. I figured that since I was going to be doing a lot of training for my new job that I deserved something fun to take notes in. 

This is my life planner. I'm equally obsessed with this, too. I write everything in here. I know when my bills are coming out. I write myself daily motivational notes. At the end of the week, I always think of something I'm thankful for that week. I have fun markers that add to the excitement. I enjoy sitting down each weekend and planning out my next week. It's truly one of the biggest thrills of my weekend.

SNAPCHAT!!!

I was opposed to this at first. Then I succumbed to peer pressure and joined in on the fun. We hardly text anymore because now we can just send videos that convey so much more meaning. The filters are fun, too. This one is a favorite because it makes you look amazing without a stitch of makeup. Plus, what girl doesn't like to wear a crown of flowers on her head? 

BOOKS!!!

I almost let this one slip through my fingers again without reading it. With the deadline looming in two days, I knew I needed to get to reading. I did finish it in 2 days. It was a great read. Check out my "Book Worms Only" page for a full review.

Man, I have a lot of favorite things right now!

Celebrating 100 times of NO EXCUSES

January 4, 2016: It's a cold January evening. Am I really going to do this? Pam did give me this free camp, so it can't hurt to give it a try. I show up at the intermediate school down the street from my house. Alright, Pam, if I'm going to do this you have to come to my first workout with me....she did:) I show up with my thin yoga mat, 8 pound weights, and water bottle while Pam rolls out her mat pack with her fancy CG mat and big weights. WOW! You've got the swag and everything! Then I see her...this tiny little girl with muscles. This is the woman who's going to kill me today. Please don't let me die! Time for the warm up lap around the parking lot. You want me to run this!? Ha! Not likely. I don't run. I end up walking most of it. Luckily, Mondays are weight days. I can lift weights. Wait, burpees? What are those? Oh, no mam! I don't like those. Modify, you say? Fine. I'll have to modify everything because #newbie

Well, and hour later and I'm still alive. I think I'll come back tomorrow. I think I'll try your 5 AM. So my journey with CG begins.......

Pam and I after my first CG workout

Now let's fast forward about 6 months.....July 8, 2016. I'm celebrating my 100th check-in. This is the first big milestone in a camper's journey. On top of that, I get promoted to silver level since I have a couple of friend referrals under my belt (thanks, Mr. B and Vanessa)! That means a new shirt is coming my way. Who doesn't like free shirts! I can't believe the changes that have occurred in me these past 6 months. I've worked out in the past, even had personal trainers. This is so much different. I actually WANT to go workout. I don't care if it's early and I'm on summer break. I don't care if it's hot, cold, rainy, windy outside. I want my #gainz and I want to see my friends! I want to cheer for others and be cheered for. I want to see my body change. I want to feel stronger. I want to feel empowered. I want that feeling that I can do anything if I work hard enough. I want to be proud of myself. I want to feel good in the body I've been given....not ashamed. I only get this one body, so I better take care of it. I don't always do the right thing for it, but I sure do try to most of the time. Yes, I enjoy pizza and burgers and other comfort foods. I just don't feel guilty about it anymore because I know that most of the time I do right by myself. I'm on a journey that will last a lifetime. There really is no end game to this, only continual progress and gainz (just hopefully not the jiggly kind). 

What's different now than 6 months ago? So much! I can run that warm up lap with no problem. Not only that, but I can run a mile. A mile, people! My time improves each time I do it. I have never been a runner. I was the girl in junior high and high school that was last every time we ran. I always stopped to walk when I felt tired. Now, I push myself because I know I can do it without stopping. I may not be the fastest, and that's OK. The important thing is I will do it, and I will finish strong because I deserve it. I am strong enough to conquer my goals. I was using 8 pound weights. Now I'm using 15 pound weights, and about to bump it up to 20 pound weights. I'm flipping tires, swinging sledge hammers, and running with fire hoses like a BOSS!!! I can do 65 burpees in 5 minutes, and I'm aiming higher this next round. I'm doing exercises without modifying almost all the time. It's been killing me this week to modify exercises due to my oral surgery, but I digress.......

I've made some great friends on this journey. I don't know why I was so worried that first day. People are so friendly at camp. There's no judgement, only encouragement. I have a confidence in myself that I've never had before. At 30 years old I feel the best I've felt in my life. I'm not at my thinnest either. I'm still heavier than I'd like to be. The difference is that I don't focus on that scale because it just doesn't matter. I'm a curvy girl, and I'm OK with that. I embrace it. I remember a friend commenting to me that she likes that I'm confident with my arms enough to wear sleeveless dresses. Yes, I am! I was ashamed of my legs for the longest time. No more shame. I'm getting better every day. I will not be ashamed because this is what I've been given. If anything, it just motivates me to push harder to make things look better. I've got muscles and strength. 

"What's that, mom? You need me to carry that 50 lb bag of dog food to the shed for you? Sure! I got this! No, I don't need the dolly:)"

I'm changing my mindset. Time to rid my vocabulary of "I can't!" I may not be able to do it right now, but I will eventually do it because if you tell me I can't, I'll show you I can. Yes, I'm tired. But apparently when you think you're tired, you're only at 40% (so says Robin....). So just 60% more till death! No worries. I'm signed up for CG games. Am I intimidated by the events? A little bit. But I'm going to do it and finish it because I'm an athlete. I'm a gladiator!

These are my girls! So happy and proud to have these ladies on my CG Games team!

Team #tuffenuff bringing the gun show to town...."not fast, but not last"

I don't remember when Megan and I hit it off, but we did. We started off at the back of the running pack together barely making it. Now, we push each other to be better. Thanks for all the 4:30 AM texts and the high fives to keep me going. Thanks for making me step up my game. You've got 20's now? OK, I'm coming for you next camp with them. 

No, I'm not trying to punch her in the face. I just really wanted a pic of my shoulder muscles. That left shoulder is my proudest cut so far:)

This is my little TPT, Robin! I mean, I don't even know what to say about this crazy woman. She pushes me to be my best. She calls me on my crap. If I'm slacking, she calls me on it. "Get lower!" "Sprint faster!" "I want that butt touching the ground when you squat!" "Don't you drop that plank!" "Get off your knees!" I could go on.....

She tried to flex in some other pics we took, but I told her "No, mam! I'm the feature in these pics. Put those guns away!" She really does plan the funnest workouts. I'm never bored, and I always feel worked out. We are all worried when she says she made up the workout at midnight.....that usually means it's going to be crazy and we'll all be confused at some point. I haven't been to a lot of trainers, but I don't know how many play games like "slosh pipe relay", "shopping cart relay" (yes, it is what you think it is....don't leave shopping carts unattended), "zombie tag", the list goes on......

Thankful for our one-on-one sessions that we've had. Those have helped me perfect my form and become more familiar with the exercises. Those sessions also showed me what I can really do when pushed on an individual level. Once you show her and yourself that you can do it, don't even try cheating at camp. You will get called on it!

I can't do a post like this without including my main squeeze. He will hit 100 next week. I brought him week 2 of my first camp since it was buddy week. He tried to resist, but I told him to just give it a try. If he didn't like it, he didn't have to come back. He totally liked it! He's been coming ever since. We've been to just about every workout together. I'm so thankful for a husband that does life with me in this manner. It's so much easier knowing that he's doing the same thing and we can support each other on our journey to healthier versions of ourselves. He better watch out though.....I'm not opposed to lifting heavier weights than him:)

The next goal is 200 check-ins by my year anniversary. I can do it! I'd like to have some more guns on display in January. If 25 pound weights were also in the mix, I'd be OK with that, too:)