Miscellany Monday

Write random and link up.

{Family Fun Day}

Saturday was absolutely gorgeous so my siblings and I all went to lunch and played outside with the kids.

We played a little bit on the railroad tracks,

played in the water down by the dam,

 

and then made our way to the park.  

{Spring Break}

My spring break officially starts Wednesday at 3.  OHHH EMMM GEEE...I can't believe it's already here...my 13 day break!  I can't believe that I'll get to spend 6 days with one of my most favorite people in the world. 

Chicago, here I come!!!!

 {Nerd Alert}

Have I ever told you guys how nerdy I am??

If not, I'm sure that you have figured that out about me.

Anyways, I'm a big fan of puzzles.

And I started this beauty this weekend.

It is HARD, but my sister and I are up for the challenge.

{HUNGER GAMES}

Last night, I started the Hunger Games for the second time around.  I'm so excited for the movie and I just want to freshen up before I go see it.  ARE YOU EXCITED?

And Shelbs...I hope you have started it!!

That's about it for today.

I'm wishing you all a very happy Monday!

XoXo

Week 9 Recap

{Week 9}

Weekly Average

803

Daily Goal

1200

I worked out super hard again this week.  I'm loving the step classes that I've been taking.  They are hard core and I am so sore after them.  I love that feeling...the feeling that I know I worked hard.

My goal over the next few weeks is to try to really watch my sodium intake.  I'm not a big fan of adding salt and pepper to my food anyways, but I know that a lot of the food that I eat has a lot of salt already added.  I mean, what doesn't have salt?  Everything does!

That's the problem.

 I'm also going to try to cut back on my coke zero's.  I've gotten to where I'm craving water more and more, but when I eat, I need flavored drinks.  I'm going to try to do lemon water.   I guess that's about it for this week.Happy Sunday lovelies.  I'm pumped about the time change.  I wasn't happy about losing an hour, but I love that it stays light outside longer.XoXo 

High Five for Friday

I really never thought Friday would get here.  Has anyone else had a crazy long week?Thankfully, Friday is finally here and I'm ready to link up with a couple of my fave girls."High Five for Friday is a weekly post about your five favorite things recently. it's a chance to stop and reflect on the things that you've enjoyed over the past week, which is something we should all do." {ONE}I used my first Pass It Forward card.

If you haven't already, go to The Shine Project and read more about this great project! I didn't do anything incredibly creative with my first card.  It was actually a last minute decision to use it on Monday morning...I was in the line at Chick Fil A when I thought about it and immediately broke out the handy dandy iphone to register my pass it forward card on the website...this is just a fun way to keep track of everyone who passes it forward.  :)When I pulled up to the window, I told the worker that I would like to pay for the car behind me as well as my own...he smiled and I handed him the pass it forward card.  I literally felt so gitty when I pulled out of Chick Fil A.  I'm super excited to use the rest of my cards. {TWO}We are participating in Boosterthon at school.  The big kickoff was Tuesday and I'm having so much fun experiencing at all for the first time. 

 “The mission of the Boosterthon Fun Run is to Change the World by strengthening schools and impacting the next generation through Fitness, Leadership, and Character.”

{THREE}
I mentioned on Wednesday that I had received a special gift from one of my favorite gals.
Jessica sent me this...

I adore my new polish and it literally made my week.  :)

Thanks again Jess!!

{FOUR}

I wrote my second ever IEP since being in the real world.  Some of you may not know what that means, but my job revolves around IEPS.  As a special education teacher, my job is to write and implement IEP's and they are kind of a big deal...actually a really big deal.  That was what the whole deadline was about today.  I finished it around 1:30 and I literally felt like breaking out in song when I finished...I was so super duper excited.  Not only did I finish it with minimal help, but I also feel pretty good about it.  We will see after the meeting next week, huh?

{FIVE}

Has anyone heard of HauteLook?

It's a wonderful website that has different daily deals...I literally check out the deals every single day and probably purchase something at least once a week.

So a few weeks ago, I was using my iphone app to check out the deals.

In my defense, there are tons of deals not just like 5 or 6 each day.

I found a very cute pair of gladiator sandals, bought them, and then got my confirmation email.

I must have been having a long day because somehow I purchased a pair of children's sandals.

I thought, ok no big deal, I have lots of nieces.  I can gift them.

Unfortunately, I asked around and no one I know is a children's size 7.

So today, I get an email that says that they unfortunately sold too many pairs and didn't have enough to fulfill my order.  Not only did HauteLook refund my $22, but they also credited me $20 more for the inconvenience.  Um OK...I was going to return them anyways.

Go ME!

OK so moving on.

Time for link up #2.

I sported 2 different mani's this week.

Happy Friday lovelies!
XoXo

It's OK

It's OK that I don't have time to sit down and write a well thought out post, but you know what I do have?? Awesome blog friends....and that is definitely ok with me!
Seriously, you guys are the absolute best.
 I've had a couple of pretty icky days, but getting sweet comments from you girls def puts a smile on my face. On top of that, when I got home from a long day of work yesterday, guess what I had waiting for me?A package....from one of my fave girls!Jessica who blogs over at Lovely Little Things sent me a sweet gift...just because she is awesome like that!Girl, you truly are the sweetest thing and you absolutely made my night.I'm saving what was inside for another post...stay tuned!I'll give you a hint...I've already tried it on.  :) Happy Thursday lovies!I had a big deadline for today so maybe tonight I'll be able to sit down and catch up on blogs.XoXo

Wednesday Loves

Ahhh, It's Wednesday!  I love me some Wednesday!  It has felt like a really long week so I'm glad to be almost over the hump.  Good ole' Alabama weather is killing my allergies and I've been feeling a little yucky the past couple of days...

But, you know what helps.

2 of my favorite linkups.

What I'm Loving Wednesday with Jamie and Oh How Pinteresting with Michelle.

Excuse the quality of my self portraits...

I'm loving my new cowboy boots.  Thanks Ebay!

I'm also loving my new running shoes....that are not fake for those of you who read my Pass it Forward post yesterday.  As if these aren't colorful enough, I am dying to get some neon yellow shoestrings.

I'm convinced that bright colors make me work out harder.

I'm loving my "new" used bike!  Can't wait to take it for a spin...hopefully this weekend!

Again, please excuse the quality of these pics...handy dandy iphone is to blame.

Loving the denim and black look.

And I'm super duper loving that I will be in Chicago in 7 days!!!

I'm loving Pinterest, like ALWAYS!

I am dying for these jeans!!!!

I love these colors..I'm craving spring!!

Words to live by...

Makes my heart melt...I would take this precious baby in a heartbeat.

LOVE!

Yes, please! 

Who doesn't want this?

I'm out with a bang...

HILARIOUS!

Happy happy Wednesday loves!

XoXo

Pass it Forward

So we all have those days that just seem like we cannot catch a break...right? I had one on Saturday.   I was already a little overwhelmed from having to take my dog and my sister, Kim's, dog (that I was dog sitting) to my sister Jenn's Friday night. I loaded them up Friday afternoon because I didn't want to be alone during the tornados Friday night.  So imagine having my medium sized dog and Kim's very large Lab in an unfamiliar environment.  That alone is stressful, but then add in 5 other dogs (4 of which are puppies) to the mix and it was pretty much a zoo. Ok so Saturday around 1, I literally counldn't take anymore of my crazy dogs.  We loaded up and came home.  I decided that they could use some playtime and I needed to clean so I put them in the back yard to play.  It hadn't rained that much so I figured they would avoid the mud...boy was I wrong. OK so in the meantime, I had opened a few packages that had come in the mail.1.  My new Nike's that I was convinced were fake because the soles came out...I was unaware that this was supposed to happen.  (I know now, but for the sake of the story, I think that they are fake).I was totally bummed that I had just been scammed/spent lots of money of fake Nike LunarGlides. 2.  My new flats from Old Navy...they were the wrong color.  UGH...really? Normally, I wouldn't have been so sensitive, but the mixture of all of these things had me about in tears. Are you still there?  I know this is a lot of background info, but just keep reading... So, I decide that I had to get out of the house and needed a little bit of relaxation...in my world, this almost always means a pedi. OK, so I open the back door to let Coral in and this is what I'm greeted by...2 dogs covered in mud, 1 of which literally has mud dripping off of her paws. OK bring on the tears...really?  I leave you alone for 30 minutes and this is what happens. I was so mad at them. Coral hasn't gained my trust enough to be left outside when no one is home so I had to clean her before I left so that I could put her back in her crate.Bathtub wasn't an option, so hose it was.I hooked up the hose in the front yard and then walk around to let her out of the fence...I don't know what I was thinking...Malich, the very large Lab, takes off running out of the fence.OK so I have to fight him for a good 10 minutes to get him back in the fence and I'm covered in mud by the end of it.This really just put me over the edge.
But.... I wash Coral, put her in her kennel, and think PEDI at last! I park, go into the nail shop, and start looking for a polish color.Any predictions on what happens next?I drop the nail polish and it shatters.  Blue nail polish....everywhere!!! I almost walked out in embarrassment, but I pushed through (not touching anymore polish of course) and finally got my relaxing pedi. SO I said all of that to say this... How insignificant are these things?? There are starving children all over the world.There are men and women fighting for my freedom.There are individuals who don't know when they will eat again.NEGLECT. ABUSE. DISEASE. DEATHand I'm worried about mud, shoes, and broken nail polish. SERIOUSLY?Sometimes it takes me feeling completely overwhelemed with petty things like these to realize how blessed I am.  I am very fortunate to have a place to lay my head, food to eat, family and friends who love me, my health, my job, a car, money, and much much more. So fast forward to yesterday morning.I was on my way to work and I was listening to my daily audio bible like I do every day. It was talking about being ambassadors for Christ...about how we should be his hands and feet to show his love through us. I felt so stupid.  That is really what life is all about and I'm worried about petty luxeries. I'm so glad that I heard that message...it really brought me back down out of the clouds. We all need a reality check every once in a while...so here is yours. What are you stressing about today and is it really worth it in the long run?Probably not.Enjoy today and spread the love!!This bring me to my next point. Have any of you heard of The Shine Project?She has started this great project called Pass it Forward."Pass It Forward was designed to get people to do little things, everyday, that makes an impact on the community around them. Pass It Forward is designed around a card:

To find out more or to get involved with "Pass it Forward" check out The Shine Project.

I ordered 10 cards and actually used my first one yesterday morning.  More on that later.
I "love" love.
Happy Tuesday
Spread the love today and remember..
Don't sweat the small stuff!
XOXO

Miscellany Monday

Hello lovelies!!  It's "Mon" day.  This weekend flew by and I am so incredibly behind with blogging.  I guess I was kind of in a rut for a few days.  Sorry I've been MIA, but I'm back, I think.

Let's get started shall we

Linking up with Lowercase Letters...

{Mini me}

Saturday night, I went to my brother and S-I-L's house for dinner and to visit.  They have 3 kiddos...Halle, Carter, and Cooper.  As soon as I walked in, Cooper (3) screams "Awesome"...guess he was excited to see me.  Carter sees me every day considering he is in kindergarten and I teach on the kindergarten hall.  Seeing me is old news for him, but Halle was as excited as Cooper to see me.

We had a mini girl's night until I had to leave for my night out...I painted her nails, taught her the 2 step zumba dance, and gave her a makeover.  I love this girl!

She wanted her nails to look like mine...I tried the whole accent nail thing.Love it!{Storm Shelter}So Friday night, we were supposed to get some really bad weather.  Since I'm house/dog sitting, I was obviously home alone with my dog and my sister's dog.  My older sister and her husband and kids live 10 minutes away and have a basement/living room area that is almost completely underground so she conviced me to load up the dogs and come spend the night with them since the weather was supposed to last well into the middle of the night.  Fortunately, the tornadoes missed us and we had a family fun night playing lots of games and spending time together.  My little brother also lives with them so we had a house full. Any excuse to play games all night is ok with me.  We played BS (which we renamed noodles for the kids sake---not having to explain what bs stands for), Spoons, and Clue.  We had so much fun.I also watched Lion King, not once, but twice with my nieces (LK-3 and Blakely-1).  Lion King is one of my all time faves and I love that my nieces are watching old school Disney movies!While I'm on the topic, my sister Jennifer (Lk and Blakely's mom) is 12 weeks pregnant and is having some health concerns.  Her doctors are considering putting her on a heart medicine that could affect the baby. Please keep her and the baby in your prayers.  We really want her to be able to do without the meds, but we don't know what to expect next time she goes for her checkup.  {Movies}I watched these 2 movies this weekend, In Tme for the second time.Both are AMAZING and I highly recommend both.Both will also make you cry so beware. 

{Smell the Roses}

Think about a goal you've been wanting to meet. What's keeping you from going after that goal? Time to conquer it!

My goal for the past few weeks were to go to the gym at least 4 times a week...I was only going like 2 and then doing odd and end things at home.  Well friends, this week I made an effort to get to the gym at least 4 times....and I did it!

Tuesday, I started looking at gyms around that offered a class that I might like to take and found out that Gold's Gym offered a free week trial.  I signed up and worked out for 2 hours Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday and 1 hour on Wednesday.  I would've made it on Friday too had it not been for the bad weather coming, but I'm so super stoked that I did 4 days.

 {Cup 1/2 Full}

This is my first time linking up with Finding Beauty in the Ordinary...

Happy Monday friendsies!

Make today ridiculously amazing!

Week 7 and 8 Recap

 {Week 7}Weekly Average958Daily Goal1200 {Week 8}Weekly Average599.5Daily Goal1200 Well friends, I think I am making the switch.  As much as I love my beloved Zumba classes at Snap, I love the calories that I'm burning at Gold's more.  I will probably still try to take some Zumba classes every once in a while at Snap, but for now I think that Gold's Gym is a better fit for me and what I'm looking for. I was sore every day this week and I'm still kind of sore today...I love that feeling.  It makes me feel like I worked hard and I am hoping that I will see results even faster.  I'm still idoling the same weight that I was when I started this whole journey, but I feel so much better which is what really matters.  I try not to focus to much on the number on the scale and I am by no means obsessed with weighing myself.  I will weigh myself maybe once a week, but I do what matters most to me is how much better I feel. I am still going strong with my New Year's "Resolutions"/lifestyle changes.{Eating}Since January, I have eaten fast food maybe a handful of times.  Disclaimer.  I DO NOT consider Chick-Fil-A fast food.The last time I had fast food was in Nashville the weekened of my birthday...over a month ago.This is huge for me...I used to eat fast food 5 or more times a week....so not good for you. {Bible}I'm still listening to my daily audio bible app daily.  It's such a great way to start my morning.I really never even listen to music (in the car) anymore.  I commute 30 minutes to and from work each day and that is usually just enough time for me to get in my "reading" for each day. {Be a better person}This is something that I strive for on a daily basis.  Sometimes I get so caught up in my own life that I forget to reach out to my loved ones.  I spent a  lot of time this weekend with my family.  I adore my nieces and nephews...they are the most amazing kids, but I don't spend nearly enough time with them.  I don't want to take for granted the time of their lives when they think that Aunt Steph is the coolest person to ever live. When I lived in New York/The Bahamas, all I wanted was to be close to my family and to be able to see my nieces and nephews whenever I wanted...now that I can, I don't take full advantage of it.  Let's all make a conscious effort to reach out to our loved ones this week.A phone call rather than a text.A letter rather than an email.Tell them how much you love and appreciate them! Ok that was my soapbox for the day. It's gorgeous outside so I'm going to soak it up.Happy Sunday!XoXo