THIS || SICK || BEAT

Morning, ladies! Happy Friday and happy almost three day weekend. I can't believe we will be in September next week and that next weekend is my anniversary weekend. Where, or where did the summer go? Well, it's still technically summer [woohoo] until late in September, but the pool is closed after this weekend and I'm so not ready for that at all.

Okay, enough pouting about summer, let's get down to my five favorites!

Favorite treat of the week: Your eyes do not deceive you, that is a single serving of Nutella. Which means, a sweet treat I can fit into my macros, wahoo! I've mentioned my love of Nutella many, many times and I'm excited that I'll have a 'treat' to look forward on workout days.

Favorite meeting of the week: Meetings, fun, say what?!?! Why yes, this meeting was UPER fun because it was the Harry Potter Book club meeting!!! We discussed the third and fourth book, while munching on treats and drinking pumpkinjuice wine. I highly enjoyed being a #nerd, discussing plots, classes I would take at Hogwarts and learning more about books I love. J.K Rowlings is a genius and if you don't agree, prepare for the #shade!

Favorite social media moment of the week: Y'all, Shannon Beador, from RHOC favorited one of my TWEETS! CRAZY! Watching the reunion, I was highly disappointed in my favorite character, Heather, because she couldn't accept an apology and move on with Shannon. I found it frustrating, because Heather was so adamant about her apology to Lydia last season, remember the whole "Do you want me to pop a vein" comment? So, in a random fit of ridiculousness, I tweeted at Shannon and tagged Heather and her husband and Shannon favorited my tweet. Important in the scheme of things, nope, but still kind of fun, right?!

Favorite pin of the week: FIRST row all the way ladies, all||the||way! #funbus #lifeisamazing #whyfrownwhenyoucansmiel #friends #laughter!

[source]

Favorite two videos of the week: I've had these both saved for two weeks, since I did my football post last week. I have so many friends and family members going back to school this week and I totally want to give them a SHOUT OUT! Mad props to y'all and especially to Sporty-spice, my bffer T, and ALL classroom teachers, going above and beyond contract hours, throughout the school year! Thanks for teaching our future generations :)! Baby got CLASSSSSSS!


Oh T-Swift, you've done it again. I LOVE e v e r y t h i n g about this song and the video. She speaks my language with her gooberish self-deprecation and honestly, the ballet sequence seems to be foreshadowing for my ballet class, this fall. I love her message of shaking off the nastiness and criticisms, cause honestly, if the haters aren't in your circle of love, they don't matter anyway :)! Sing it with me now...SHAKE IT OFF, SHAKE IT OFF!

                                                                          **linking up here and here this week**

Through It All...Give Thanks

There's a lot of negativity in the world today. Too many people out there are negative and debbie downers and the world is becoming a crazy, more dangerous place every day. I don't have time to always look for the negative, and usually am pretty positive even when life stresses me to the max. But, like everyone else, I'm human and I do have my bad days.

Yesterday was one of them. I woke up late, on the wrong side of the bed and let something stupid annoy me. From there it was all down hill, friends. Well, for a while at least. I was looking in my drafts for inspiration and came across a draft I had saved and it snapped me out of my funk real quick. Even though my day was kind of crappy, it still was my day. Everyone I love was healthy and I realized I was just had a bad attitude, not a bad life.

And when you think about it, if you're *a l i v e*, you're doing pretty well. So today, I'm counting my blessings and giving thanks. For the major, the mundane and the merciful. Every day I'm thankful for the people in my life, the blessings I've been given and the joy of living another day. With that in mind, I'm giving thanks for the small, lil bits of joy that I often over look.

[source]

Today, I'm thankful for...

BOOKS - I love reading. I love falling into a fantasy world, created by someone else. I also love devouring history about our nation and other countries, but mostly America. Historical fiction is my happy place, but I love a good mystery/thriller as well.

A good g l a s s of wine - And only a glass. I used to think I needed more, but now just a glass makes me happy. Whether it's with dinner, dessert or just because, a glass of wine makes me feel fine ;)!

Warm clean clothes out of the dryer - They smell good and keep you warm, le sigh.

Clean sheets after a shower -  My favorite way to go to sleep.

Family {inside} jokes - My family is a funny, crazy bunch. #nojoke #askmyfriends. And we have the most random inside jokes that can send us all into fits of giggles. Most of them center around movies but a few are OOOPSIES that someone has commited in the past. It's all in love though, #billionsandbillionsofmiles.

The smell outside after a rain storm - I'm not a lover of rain, but understand it's a necessity in our world. Unless I have something that the rain cancels or makes tricky to attend, I don't mind the rain, I actually enjoy the sound of the pitter-patter on a roof. But, my favorite part of rain is the smell afterwards, the world just smells refreshed! 

My sunroof - I love feeling the wind in my car, while the sun's shining and the tunes on high. 

Pretty underoos - Sometimes the power of pretty underoos can turn the day around. Yes, it's silly, but feeling pretty under my clothes often gives me a pep in my step.

Emojis - I've carried on conversations with out words and I love adding an emoji to a text to convey my joy or empathy. And sometimes, I just love sending the p00p emoji... y'all know that s*it is funny [get it ;)]

Silly YouTube videos - While I'm not a huge YouTube time waster, I do find certain video selections quite entertaining and will watch them multiple times. I'm so glad there are uber talented people out there, that create things, JUST for my amusement.

 

Next time you're down or stressed, try and make a list of the big and small things you are thankful for at that moment. I promise you're attitude will turn around and you'll turn that frown upside down :)

What are some random things you are thankful for, today?!?!

inspiration found *here*

I Confess...this is real life

Today I'm confessing, real life oops.

Or, as I like to call it "I confess I'm not perfect"!

Prepare for some honest confessions, ladies.

I confess...

:: There is laundry in my hamper that hasn't been done for two+ weeks.

:: I specifically annoyed a coworker because she was rude to me, earlier that day. 

:: We have a box behind our love seat that's been there for months.

:: I've spent more time than I care to admit worrying about things that don't matter.

:: Le Husband and I got snippy with each other at the gym this week and while it's not super public, the fact that we are arguing in public embarrasses me.

:: The two bags of donation clothes in my car were in my bedroom since the beginning of the summer. I just now put them in my car to donate.

:: I made a mistake at work this weekend that no one has brought up, so I'm hoping I'm the only one that caught it.

:: Tonight I'm going to my first Harry Potter book club meeting and I'm scared I'm going to be the group HP dunce.

:: Family arguments happen and that's all I'll say about that.

:: My linen closet is a disaster and has been all year.

:: I get frustrated being the neat freak in the relationship.

:: My phone has gone unanswered a few times beacuse I just didn't care to talk/text.

:: Yesterday I wore wedges with three nails that looked wrecked.

:: I forgot to shave and wore a sleeveless shirt on Monday.

:: Speaking of forgetting to shave, I was so distracted last week that I shaved one leg, finished showering, turned off the water, started drying myself off and whoops, realized I needed to hop back in the shower. #lordhelpme

:: I am including this gif because I don't want to be a bad confession blogger. And I find this image entirely too funny.

Happy humpday, chicks!

linking up with kathy…le duh

Monthly Motivation #1 {Recipe Files}

Today's the day, our wonderful link up day.

This linkup was created to help keep us on track and accountable for our fitness or health goals for the month. Here you can share your goals, struggles, plans for fitness and health or just share some new recipes you love or want to try. Whatever you wanna share, do it today :)!

Below are my monthly goals for September:
[I've highlighted the two I'm really trying to focus on]

Fitness:

[source]

+Three sets of eight pull-ups or two sets of fingertip pull-ups.

+Comfortably squat 135 pounds.

+Complete two a days at least twice a week.
I've been steadily lifting since January with Le Husband and have become significantly stronger, which shows when I flex. However, my weight and the inches haven't changed and that's frustrating me to no end. I want my arm muscles to show when I'm not flexing, instead of just looking big and I want to lose inches off of my stomach. In order to achieve these goals, I'm going to need to up my cardio, as I'm almost solely lifting with Le Husband. There is a gym right near my work and I'm going to go at lunch time just to do 20-30 minutes of cardio 2-4x a week. I did it last week and loved it, so hopefully I can stay on the wagon all through September.

Food:

[source]

+Consistently track my macros [I'm so bad at this].

+Stay on track on the weekends.

+Try two new healthy recipes.
 I've tried to track my macros this year and have failed, miserably both times, purely because I just didn't think it worked. However, it DOES work, you just have to track, measure and prep your food, which isn't as hard as it sounds. My Fitness Pal is awesome [be my friend here] and really helps track my portions along with my protein, carb and fat intake. I've been really diligent the past two weeks and I really want to see what a month of tracking can do for my body. My biggest struggle is finding the time to prep, if I don't take the time at the beginning of the week I usually fall of the wagon a day or two later. I know I won't see progress if I keep slipping up, so I'm going to try really hard to be diligent, all month.

*********

Today, I also want to share one of my new favorite, healthy recipes, that I just kind of made up. I didn't boil my eggs one morning but knew I needed something for breakfast, so I threw this together on a whim. It's extremely filling and has a pretty awesome macro break down too.

Recipe

[ Protein: 20g; Carbs: 9g; Fat: 11g]

1 cup Fage Greek yogurt

1 tablespoon chia seeds

1 teaspoon honey

A few shakes of cinnamon

Step one: Put everything together, in a bowl, mix up and wait about twenty minutes before eating. You want the chia seeds to get plump [crunchy chia seeds are no fun] so you can make this the night before or at home and then eat it at work. Feel free to add in other mixin's if you prefer, fruits would taste delicious. 

I can't wait to read everyone's motivational posts.

Linkup with us below!

Finally Chillaxin'

Morning, friends. Y'all remember when CHILLAXIN' was the phrase that paid? Yeah, me too. I have to say, this weekend was the perfect definition of chilliaxin' and I'm incredibly thankful for the down time. Life is about to get pretty busy, I honestly can't believe August is almost over.

This weekend I…

…finally got my phone semi-upgraded. I've been on a 4 for the past six months and it's sooooo slow. Friday night I was able to get home, so Daddy could work his magic and switch me to his 4s. Hallelu!

…visited with my lovely aunt who was in town.

…slept for 12 hours on Friday night.

…woke up refreshed and hit the gym.

…reached a new high dead lifting :)!

…made an epic frittata for lunch.

…watched tons of LLWS. The kids are so precious, I hate that someone has to lose. 

…joined my family at our pool's annual Crab Feast, in the rain.

…housed a ton of crabs.

…had a blast even though it was a dreary, rainy day.

…drove to Menchie's afterwards because we still needed carbs.

…slept for 12 hours Saturday night #soneededsorested

…drove to Maryland for a kickball game.

…considered leaving the team after a particularly horrible performance. The difference in mentality with many players is really starting to grate on my nerves.

…loved my studly cheerleader and was glad to have him in the stands.

…grocery shopped for the week. #getinmybelly

…played two soccer games.

…got hit in the baby maker, TWICE, within five minutes.

…involuntarily shed a few tears. #ouch

…ate a fantastically delicious and healthy Sunday dinner.

…packed the gym back for two a days.

How was your weekend? What did you do?

Linking up with these beautiful ladies today whoop

*/*/*/*/*/*

Don't forget to come back here tomorrow, for the first Monhtly Motivation linkup. Share your fitness and health goals for the month, so we can help keep you accountable. Join me and my two fabulous friends, Lynn and Carolyn the last Tuesday of every month. Look forward to seeing y'all!

Are You Ready For Some Football!?!?

Happy Friday ladies! Today's a special Friday Five, as I'm also linking up with Erin for her Football Friday linkup. Can you believe football season is almost here? I'm a summer girl, through and through, but football helps take the sting out of fall for me, every year. So, without further adieu, here are my five favorite things about football :)!

*******

Favorite Football Team: THE DALLAS COWBOYS!!! I've cheered for them since I can remember, Daddy loves em, so you know Daddy's girl loves em too. Yes, I know I live right outside of Washington D.C. home of the Deadskins, I mean Redskins. TRUST ME, I get asked ALL THE TIME how I became a fan and usually the whole "I grew up cheering for them" gets me a bit of a pass, but sometimes people are ridiculous. If they really get annoying, I just start quoting Super Bowl wins, player names and game stats to get them off my back. Hard to make fun of a fan when she knows her ish. The 90s were the best because we owned the NFL and I loved watching my team bring home the trophy. The past decade or so has been tough, but I've stuck it out with my team and our quarterback {oh Romo}. I go all in every year and every year I get my heart broken. Hopefully, 2015 breaks the curse, but honestly, as long as we sweep the deadskins, it's a winning year to me.

[My team, beating the skins]

Favorite Quarterback: Hands down, Troy Aikman. Legit thought I was going to marry him growing up. He was the number one overall draft pick in 89, played his only twelve seasons with the Cowboys, leading them to three Super Bowl victories, was chosen Super Bowl XXVII MVP and was a six-time Pro-Bowler.  Oh yeah, and he's the quintessential good looking Texas Cowboy. I was so bummed when he got married [as was my dad, haha], but I've continued to enjoy looking at him as he announces games on the Fox Network. Personally, I think he needs to give Romo some tips, but hey that's just me.

[source]

Favorite Football Food: I love me some football food, y'all. Chips and guac. Sliders. Seven layer dip. Meatball subs. Nachos. Basically, if it's cheesy, salty and bad for you, I want to eat it. And I do. I love trying new tailgate recipes and have found some amazing ones through the years. I have to say, my favorite tailgating food is a tie between a cheesy, crab dip and a really good slider. YUM to the O!

[source]

Favorite Football Memory: Honestly, I don't have just one, but all of them revolve around being in Fedex Field, watching my Cowboys kick the poop out of the Redskins. There is nothing better than being in someone else's home stadium and handing them a loss. Bonus points for keeping them out of the playoffs, too :)!

Three years of watching our team win...woop woop!

Favorite Non Football-esque part of the Football Season: Not only can the Cowboy's claim the title of "America's Team", their cheerleaders are the BEST in the business and "America's Sweethearts". If I could go back in time, I'd totally take dance so I could try out for the DCC. These are the most talented women in the business and such role models for the community, too. If you need another show to watch, I highly, highly suggest DCC Making the Team, it's pretty fabulous :)!

Let's hear it for Erin and her FABULOUS FOOTBALL LINKUP!!!!

*********

ps.com: Don't forget to linkup with Lynn, Carolyn and me next Tuesday for:

**linking up here and here this week**

Another MUST Read

Morning, ladies. Since there were a few other ladies that mention they had a grumpy day this week, I thought I'd share a lil inspiration today. Sometimes we just need to read a post, or a quote and our whole mindset can do a 360. Hopefully, something here today will make you smile.

And if all else fails, remember, I think you're FABULOUS!

[source]

[source]

[source]

[source]

[source]

[source]

[source]

I Confess...today my post sucks

And normally I'd just skip today, because why push out something you don't love. But, I do LOVE Kathy's link-up and the thought of missing it makes we sad. So here's the saddest confession post ever.

I confess… I got grumpy this weekend for no reason. And was a brat. Bad pinky.

The best grumpy face I could find.

I confess…  I've been watching way too much Little League World Series. But there's a girl rocking it out, so I've got to support rep my GIRL POWER!!!

I confess… I love my BOFF like whoa! hashtagdancingladyemoji

I confess… After two nights of bad sleep I'm not even mad that Le Husband was out of town last night.  #sometimesyouneedthewholebed #weneedaking

I confess… I still miss my love, even when he's gone for a day [but totally understand it's different for you military spouses so I won't even try and compare it. #madlove #madrespect #y'allarerockstars].

I confess… I have no gifs in this post and it's sad. #sorry

I confess… I know this post sucks, so thanks for reading :)!

ps.com! I confess you'll totally make my day if you linkup with us, next Tuesday! 

Easy Fish Tacos {Recipe Files}

Alright ladies, here's the super delicious and easy recipe I promised you. I'm thrilled so many of you are excited, makes me feel all chefy ;)! I will warn you, a lot of this is preference oriented with it comes to baking, measurements and ingredients. Feel free to substitute as you wish. 

Ingredients:

Any kind of white fish [We used Mahi-Mahi and I'd highly suggest it over other fish. But, it isn't a MUST. Try and buy fish responsibly when possible].

Cabbage [purple or green]

Carrots

Red Onion

Lemon

Lime

Salt

Pepper

Cilantro

Guacamole [store bought or homemade]

Tortillas or tortilla substitute

SLAW:

Step 1: Shred the carrots [we did 6 baby carrots], slice the red onion [we did fajita-esque cuts, about 1/4 of an onion] and cut the cabbage. I chose to finely slice/chop the cabbage, but you could leave it in larger chunks if you want. I ended up using about two cups, which was perfect for five/six tacos. 

Step 2: Combine everything in a mixing bowl. Cut the lime in half and squeeze the juice of one lime over the slaw. Add in your Cilantro [we used about a 1/2 a teaspoon, but we love cilantro], salt, pepper to taste and mix together. Taste and add more seasoning to your preference. Once it's done, set to the side.

FISH
[start the fish first, then while it's cooking, get to work on your slaw]

Step 1: We chose to sear our Mahi on our cast-iron and then put it in foil in the oven. You can do the same, or just back the fish or just cook it on the stove. I told you, it's all about preference.

Step 2: After we seared the fish, we placed each filet in a tin-foil wrap and put a slice of lemon and lime on top for extra flavor. Place the packets into a 350 degrees preheated oven and cook until fish is done [we use our meat thermometer, but if you don't have one just cook until fish is flaky].

Building your taco: 

Step 1:  After the fish cools [don't burn yourself] cut it into bite size pieces and place on your tortilla [or substitute].

Step 2: Layer on the slaw and guac. I piled mine super high, but I'm all about the flavor.

Step 3: Devour and go back for seconds!

 

That's it, you're done. Easy, breezy, delcious, right?!?

Let me know if you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer them.

Now, GO ENJOY FOR DINNER ASAP!

An "Above Average" Weekend

WOOHOO, another week, another dollar right?!?!

This was our first weekend local in the past two weeks and this weekend I...

…played a full soccer game, without subs. #myfeetstill hurt

…scored three goals, but we still lost.

…enjoyed an incredibly lazy Saturday morning with Le Husband. #heaven

…caught one of my favorite movies with my morning coffee #robinwilliams

…completed a gym workout, inside and outside.

…reached a new high on bench, 105 pounds, baby!!!

 …BOOKED OUR ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY TRIP!

…went on a double date with my parents for dinner at Ray's the Steaks.

…indulged in some divine steaks and sides .

28oz steak, lobster mac and cheese, mushrooms, potatoes and creamed spinach. #delish

…forgot to take a picture of our amazing key lime pie and chocolate mousse.

…devoured it too fast.

…went to a bar to celebrate a gym colleagues birthday.

…felt incredibly welcome from the host and the birthday boy.

…was told, by another gym colleague that I was "above-average at the gym, but all done up you're beautiful". #backhandedcompliment #yourekiddingright #toomanydrinks

…did Le Husband proud and just smiled instead of getting pissy.

…sipped on multiple delicious black cherry mojitos.

…made Le Husband take a bar selfie.

…loved my tie-dyed maxi dress and wedges outfit.

…walked the mile home from the bar and loved the cool evening weather.

…passed out, quickly.

…forgot to set my alarm for church, Sunday morning.

…ran errands and prepped for the week.

…did laundry and cleaned the apartment.

…watched a ton of Premier League soccer.

How was your weekend? Anything fun happen? 

Hope you have a fabulous Monday and rest of the week. 

Linking up with these beautiful ladies today whoop

Sunday Social

No your eyes do not deceive you, I am blogging on a Sunday.

I thought it would be fun to link up with Ashley

for Sunday Social :)!

1. What is one item you wish you could splurge on right now?

LV Never Fill purse. I WANT I WANT!

[source]

2. If you had an entire weekend of no plans what would you do?

I'd enjoy a lazy morning in bed, with Le Husband, then brunch in the city, followed by some monument viewing and then a five star dinner. Man, I'm hungry just thinking about it. 

3. What is the next place you are visiting outside of your current city?

Ohio to visit family.

4. Are you a neat freak or a clutter bug?

90% neat freak and 10% clutter bug.

5. What is your favorite summer purchase?

My Kate Spade bag. It's pretty and perfect and pink!

Have a wonderful Sunday, ladies!