Five on Friday

Happy Friday y'all!!

1 - Clearly I love link ups!  Nothing wrong with 2 in one week if you as me ;)  And it's important to always count your blessings, so I'm loving listing my fav things for the week!

2 - Today is the official start of summer & the longest day of the year!!  We're celebrating by catching a few rays in between classes at the box today & maybe a little happy hour on our patio later.  Pretty close to perfect minus some type of body of water {preferably a lake or ocean, but sadly neither are in our back yard!}!

3 - Instagram has video!!

I saw this picture yesterday on Instagram and was thoroughly amused!  I couldn't really get into vine!  I just couldn't wrap my head around another form of social media to use.  But I can definitely get into some video on Instagram!!  It's one of my fav forms of social media to begin with, I think video will be fun.  

And Vine, let's be honest...you just got blocked.

4 - This is our first weekend in a while with no real commitments or plans!!  After classes at the box & working out tomorrow, we'll probably hang in the back yard for a bit.  Then we've made loose plans for a little shopping {new bed = new bedding!} and an at home Paleo pizza/movie night.  Sign me up!

5 - 90s Pop Radio on Pandora.  Go add this station immediately!  How could you not love a little Third Eye Blind, Sugar Ray, Britney, Will Smith, Mariah, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Hanson....the list goes on & only gets better!  Such good jams!!!

What's your Five on Friday!?  Cheers!

Officially official...

Welp...it's officially official!  Cat's out of the bag!  

My Ben cat :)

Today I told my school I will not be returning in the fall.

Starting Wednesday, I will be a full time trainer, office manager, marketing {and whatever else needs to be done} gal for CrossFit Pineville!!!  I'm sad and excited and thrilled and a little scared and super pumped and then a little sad again.  Basically, I'm a ball of emotion!

If you've been around here a while, you may remember this post I wrote last fall.  Suddenly, I feel like I'm a flip flopper and going back on everything I wrote in that post.  But I know in my head and my heart that's not true, I'm not flip flopping.

My principal summed it up well today when she said "You're not running from something, you're running to something."  At the end of the day, even with all the mess going on in the educational world - all the politics, low teacher moral, terrible pay, standardized testing, 21st century teaching, yada, yada, yada - I'd still be going back in the fall if CrossFit Pineville hadn't been born.

I was fortunate to work at a great school with great people and great kids!  And I will sincerely miss the people and kids!!!  But will I miss the mess and the stress?  No sir-ee bob! :)

So tomorrow, you may hear me squeal with glee as I leave the school building and I'll be doing my happy dance all the way to the box!  Haha

In non-box/CFP news...

Brandon and I finally got to meet our sweet baby nephew, Weston, in Michigan this past week!

He is the cutest little man!!  And feisty!  So glad we could meet him before he was walking and speaking in full sentences!

And our sweet new little niece, Scarlett, was born yesterday!!

Born June 9th at 3:20am, 6 lbs 14 oz, 19.5 in long.  She's a little peanut!

And a doll baby!  I can't wait to get my hands back on her!!

These baby nieces and nephews give me fever....

But then I remember how I like sleeping through the night so we'll wait just a bit longer ;)

Happy day friends!

5 On Friday

Hello Blog World!!  I promise I haven’t fallen off the face of the planet, I’m still alive and kicking!  Remember that time I opened a CrossFit gym while still teaching full time!?  Yeah that was a crazy, busy, fun time!! Oh wait, that’s right now!

So since I’ve been absent from the blogging world for {ahem} over 3 weeks now, let’s just jump back in with a little link up 5 On Friday love, shall we!?

1 – So I’m loving every minute of being at the box – coaching, meeting new members, working out there!!  But, things are just a tad busy so not only have I been absent from blogging, I’ve pretty much fallen off the face of social media! 

Home girl has no time.  I’m talking zero free time.  Between school, sprinting home to grab dog, squeezing in my own work out, coaching 2 evening classes, getting home around 9, making dinner and lunch for the next day, sending any emails or any CFP social media posts, showering and passing out around 11….yeah I’m pooped.  Happy!  But pooped :) 

There is a light though….we’re down to 1 hand.  I have 5 days left!  5!!!  Sweet glory hallelujah amen!

2 – The barista this morning accidentally made my latte a double.  I’m pretty sure that was actually a small Friday morning miracle!  I should have told her I love her.  Let’s be honest, I could pretty much use an IV of caffeine at this point.

3 – Little Scarlett Idalia should be here any day!  We’re all {not so} patiently awaiting the arrival of my newest little niece!!  I know my brother & SIL are ready to meet their baby girl & we’re all excited to add another girl to the brood!  My niece Roen’s excited to have a girl cousin since she’s holding her own with 3 little brothers!

4 – Season 7 of Dexter finally shipped to us last weekend!!  We’re already 4 episodes in and I can’t wait to watch more this weekend.  It’s weird to have a favorite serial killer, but I do!

5 – I may not be having a summer off as I have in the past since we now own a gym and all, but that doesn’t mean my summer to do list isn’t growing!  I have a few house tasks to accomplish and we’re planning to get a new bed for our master bedroom & {finally!} put together a guest bedroom.  I think I’m probably more excited about the guest bedroom than our own new bed, ha!  Of course my summer to do list will get its own post :)  You know I love a good list {or 12!} ;)

That’s all for today friends!  Hi 5 for Friday & Happy Weekend!!!

Counting Down

via pin from Words to Live By by Michelle

So, I know.  I know I need to live for today and enjoy life here and now and not get too hung up on the future.  I know these things....and I feel like I'm doing a pretty good job of that lately!

BUT.  There are a lot of exciting things coming up!!  So here's what I'm looking forward to and making my count down list...

Any day now - A new baby nephew!!  Official due date - Wed. Feb. 27th

1 week - March 2nd - My 26th Birthday!!  Bring it on!

1 month - March 23rd - My first Spartan Sprint!!  Bring it on!?  :/  Haha

5 weeks - March 30th - April 7th - Spring Break '13!  Woop woo!!!

6 weeks - April 6th - Cooper River Bridge Run & a long weekend in Charleston!

14 weeks - A new baby niece!!  Official due date - Fri. May 31st

15 weeks - aka 68 school days until - Summer, Summer, Summer, Summertime!!!

Yes, I'm officially counting down until summer.  Please don't judge me!  :)  But until summer gets here, I'll be sure not to wish away the days in between.  They're of great value, too! 

Hope you're all having a stellar weekend!

Thankful Thursday

Well hello there little blog of mine!  I haven't meant to neglect you since Monday, but in case you've forgotten, right now is the beginning of the school year.  It's just a tad busy {that's sarcasm, y'all!} so, sadly I haven't had beaucoups of free time to sit & write!

But I thought it would be more fun to be thankful today, instead of griping about the easy, leisurely days of summer being ripped from my grasp... tear :,(  <-----that's a tear!

So today, I'm counting my blessings!  Here's what I'm thankful for....

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1.  My job.  As challenging, under eye, dark circle provoking, and all time consuming as it is (see this post), I'm thankful to have a job, an abled body in which to use to work, and a paycheck at the end of every month!  Amen.

2.  Changing seasons.  There's just something about the change from summer to fall - the cooler temps, the football games, the smell of sharpened pencils!  Leaves changing, boots and scarves, chunky sweaters, and pumpkin things!  Oh yes, it might be my favorite.

3.  A pretty, working, non-peed-on phone.   It is so pretty!

4.  Friends who will watch our fur babies & treat them as their own.  This weekend will be our first time to leave Berkley!  Our friend Andrea & her kitty cat Oliver will be staying at our house to watch the babes!  She's sweet to give up a weekend of freedom to play mom to our fur babies (a puppy mind you!).  She's played mom to Benson, though, many times before :)  I know Benson & Berkley will love having Oliver over to play!

5.  A weekend away.  Brandon left yesterday afternoon for Michigan & I'm flying up Friday, mid day! We're headed up for B's Company's annual summer work party!  We were hoping to squeeze some family time in, but most everyone is busy when we're free :(  We're planning to make the best of it though and have an out of town date night!  Fun right!?

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We're over the hump, friends!!  Happy almost weekend, y'all!

Friday's Letters

I'm linking up again today with Ashley at Adventures of Newlyweds for Friday's Letters!

Shall we...

Dear Husband, thanks for supporting my leisurely summer off of work!  I'm excited to once again be contributing to the bank account instead of sucking it dry ;)

Dear Summer, Remind me how you slipped away so quickly!?  I knew it would happen and every year it truly goes a little quicker than the last!  Thanks for the memories though, they're priceless :)

Dear Friday, Even though it was only a 2 day work week, knowing it was Friday made the alarm sound friendlier and the rolling out of bed a little easier!

Dear Teacher Workdays, Thank you for slowly easing me back into a work schedule!  I think with one more week of workdays, I just might be ready to hit the ground running with students.  Ahh!

Dear Berkley, I can't lie, I'm sad your other ear popped.  :(  I knew this day would come, now I feel like you're all grown!  And don't worry, I'll beat up any kids who make fun of those big things...you'll grow into them!  I hope.

Dear Panthers, I've got my jersey laid out for tonight, the cooler is ready to be packed & we're rip roarin' ready to go!  It may only be pre-season, but this girl (and my people) will be cheering like it's the real deal!

Dear Weekend, I love you!

That's all!!  Happy Friday y'all :)

Summer "To Do List" Update

Since today's my last day of summer vacay, I thought it would be fitting to do an update on my Summer "To Do" List and share what I finished!

1 - Clean out my email.  Check!  Although it's already starting to pile up again...never ending process I guess :)

2 - Complete the Photo Wall in our bedroom.  Check!  You can read all the details and see pics here!

3 - Make a desk for our bedroom.  Totally scratched that idea!  After completing the photo wall, I decided I'd rather have a long bench or low table underneath it instead of a desk.

4 - Spray paint the door knobs & hardware in our house.  Downstairs - Check!  We are about halfway through with this project!  

The downstairs is complete except for the deadbolt on the back door (does anyone have any clue how to get those off!?) and we're almost complete with all the doors in our bedroom.  12 doors down, 11 to go!

This project is not hard at all, just time consuming as the summer humidity makes it take longer for the spray paint to dry!  Brandon has kind of adopted this project, so knobs and hardware are only getting painted on the weekends when he's home.

We love, love, love how it's looking, though!!  We feel very DIY savvy ;)

5 - Get a chair for our family room.  Check!  We ended up getting this chair this past weekend!

I originally wanted a colorful, printed chair; but after lots of looking, nothing could be shipped within a timely manner & this one was on sale and is very comfy!!  It's from By Design.

Ben's in his lion perch :)

Since the chair isn't colorful, I added some colorful pillows!  I'm still trying to decide if I love it and may keep looking for something I like better.  We can always move this chair to our bedroom if I find a different chair down the road.

6 - Organize our closet & create a jewelry wall.  Check!  God Bless us, we have a huge stinkin' closet and this girl right here isn't complaining!!  As of today, closet updates are finally complete!  

I organized all my clothes several weeks ago and hung the jewelry wall 2 weekends ago.

neutrals and pants way down there

Jerseys, scarves, and light jackets 

Colors!  And dresses

Here's my shoe wall just for fun :)

jewelry wall

Then today, I picked up the final jewelry organizational pieces - these 2 dishes from World Market to hold my bracelets and earrings on top of my dresser!

Without the dishes, my earrings and bracelets were all over my circle plate - it was a confusing mess! I love the way it looks now!

7 - Change the title for my car to be solely in my name.  Unfortunately, this task is not complete!  I did pay off my car (yay!!) back in July and I've been waiting to receive the title in the mail ever since.  Thankfully, I decided to call and check on it and they told me it had been 'returned to sender'!  Weird considering they had the correct address!?

It should be in the mail now, though.  Sadly, I now have to pick an afternoon after school to spend at the lovely DMV.  Joy!

8 & 9 - Get a queen box spring, mattress, & railings and make a headboard for the guest bedroom. Ha. Haha. Hahahaha.  I knew this one wasn't going to happen!  Not this summer anyways! But it is still on my house 'to do' list.....for one day :)

So since I scratched #3 and I knew 8 & 9 probably wouldn't happen, I completed 4 1/2 tasks out of 6.  Not too shabby!  

Truthfully, I'm just thankful to have a summertime to relax, vacation, complete some "to do's", and rejuvenate before heading back to teach my kiddos!

I'm convinced summertime was really invented for teachers ;)

Last Weekend of Freedom!

Sounds dramatic, huh!?  Our weekend really wasn't.  Just for effect ;)

But truthfully, it was my last Sunday night where I didn't have a care in the world or a thought of work the next day!  Gone are those Sunday evenings.

We did have a great weekend, though!  As always, it went by quickly!

Friday night, Berkley helped me read up on potty training...

And from what I was able to actually read, looks like we're doing a lot right!!  So that's encouraging!  Just takes time for puppies to fully get the hang of it.  But slowly & surely, we're getting there!

I made THE best pizza in the world.  Ok, I can't lie, I don't really know if it's the best pizza in the whole world.  I am quite a pizza connoisseur, though {home girl really likes some pizza!} and this pizza was amazeballs!!

Pesto, Goat Cheese, Chicken Pizza

The recipe hails from Christina at Carolina Charm.  She & her hubs actually made a Portobello Mushroom, Pesto, Goat Cheese Pizza - but I do. not. do. mushrooms!  Oh gag, I've tried, but I just can't like them!!

So we subbed chicken for the portobellos, and again - SO good!!

Saturday morning was nothing short of fantastic...

I woke up with some coffee and a side of Zack Morris :)  Saved By The Bell reruns were on so B and I dozed on the couch all morning before finally getting busy.

I proudly repped my team during my workout and then B and I went shopping for a chair for our living room!  More on that later...

We played with our floppy eared boy...

Still one floppy ear for now :)

...before heading up the street for some wings, beers, & football!!  My Panther's didn't win, but it is only pre-season and my QB Cam-ron only played a few series.  I'm ready for the game this Friday! Woo!

Sunday, I was lazy bones.  No working out or cleaning or nothing!  And we had breakfast for dinner!!  Happy girl & happy belly :)

This morning I met Ashley, little D & Rachel for breakfast at Panera then we pooled it up a bit!  Gotta squeeze all the summer fun I can into these last few days.

I managed a trip to Trader Joe's, cleaned all the bathrooms & got in a good workout/run.  I'd say it's been a good Monday!

Hope y'all had a great weekend & a super easy Monday!

A little Friday love...

Happy Friday y'all!

Good news - you made if through the work week!!

Sad news - by next Friday, I, too, will have also made it through a work week...eeep!  A 2 day work week nonetheless, but my summer will be over and I will have returned to work.  Common Core & Lesson Plans & Scheduling...Oh my!! :)

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Since it's Friday and all good things are summarized in this day of the week as it surely begins the weekend, I thought I'd share just a little of what I'm loving this week...

1. First & foremost I'm loving the feedback I received on my last post.  It's sometimes hard to convey your true tone or the meaning behind any "serious" post per say.  

I, by no means, was digging for pats on the back or props for my job & would never want to minimize anyone else's job!  I certainly could never be a nurse {Change a bedpan or clean up vomit!?  Eww, no thanks!}, salesman {Oh, you're not interested in my product?  Ok, sorry I ever bothered you!}, police officer {Me? Take down criminals weighing in at 285 and 6'3 with my 5'1 self!? Ha}, or many other professions!

But I think y'all really understood my tone and that I just needed to write from my heart on that subject :)  So thanks!

2. I'm loving the clothes I got Wednesday when I did a little back to school shoplifting ;)  

Next Thursday means wearing actual clothes every day again & not lounging in my pajamas until I decide to put my workout clothes on, so I thought a little back to school shopping was in order and Brandon obliged :)  

I stopped by Old Navy & NY&Co {they're having their annual BOGO Pants Sale!} Here a few of the treasures I got...

Yep, these are the same shirt & I got 2 different colors :) 

This tank was 5 bucks!  And I got a new cardi in navy, but couldn't find it online!

3. I'm loving that it's August & that means one thing....FOOTBALL IS BACK!!!  The Panther's have their first pre-season game this Saturday!  Woohoo!!  We're not going, but we are going next Friday night when they play the Dolphins!  I can't wait!!  Are you ready for some football!?!?

New logo!!

4. I'm always loving these 2 stinkers...

....but that goes without saying!

5. I'm loving the summer thunderstorms each night!  It's perfect to relax on the couch with a book & the Olympics playing in the background :)  Although I'm not loving potty training a puppy in the monsoons each night!  Ugh!!

6. I'm really loving my healthy eating habits this week!  Feel like I'm finally back on track from vacations, summer & eating pretty clean again.  My waist line says Amen.

That's all I've got for today, friends!  May your weekend be warm, sunshiny & blessed!

A Weekend at Home

We had a pretty quiet weekend at home over here - it was very relaxing!

I'm just trying to soak up every free and quiet moment & really enjoy it as my summer is slipping away!!

Saturday we slept in as late as you possibly can with a puppy {so, not very late!} and got in a good workout!  Then B did lots of yard work while I cleaned the house.  

We also had a lawn service come out and evaluate our yard and they should be sending us a quote.  With B traveling as much as he does, he spends a lot of his at home time working in the yard - no fun!!  Plus, fall is approaching which means things like aerating and seeding and fertilizing - so things we know nothing about!  Haha :)

I mean, seriously!  How cute is this guy!?

We spent Saturday night hanging with this guy!  I'm sure his other ear is going to pop any day now, but I'm thinking about taping it down so he keeps one up, one down forever!! ;)

We thought about going to dinner & a movie downtown Saturday night, but we figured that might be a little too long for little guy to be locked up just yet.  Instead B cooked dinner, poured me some wine & we watched episodes of Shameless - our latest series obsession!

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And finally, Dexter Season 6 is available this month!!  Woohoo - we'll be all caught up just in time for Season 7.  We don't watch a lot of TV around here or anything ;)

Sunday, we woke up slow, already looking forward to Lasagna leftovers for dinner {fatties :)} watched some DVRed shows, and finished off the first season of Shameless.  I made some delish Banana Bread & hung my jewelry organizers!  Love, love, love!

B is off for his travels for the week and I'm planning to take full advantage of my last full week of summer!

Happy Monday, friends!

Friday's Letters

Today I'm linking up with Ashley from Adventures of Newlyweds for her weekly Friday's Letters link up.  

I recently came across Ashley's blog and she's become one of my new favorites, so I'm excited to link up today!  I really like her writing style and, like myself, she married a Michigander :)

So anyways, here are my Friday Letters...

• Dear husband, thanks for the impromptu date night last night!  It was nice to wine and dine with you at a new spot on a random Thursday night and reconnect after your travels.  You always make Thursdays a bright spot in my week!

• Dear Berkley, you are just the sweetest, cutest pup we could probably ever find!  We're glad you're a Shuck now :)

• Dear Benson, you are not forgotten my friend!  I know you're uber jealous you can't go outside like your bro, but you must always be an indoor kitty as we live right near a busy road!!  I also know you don't understand that, so we'll continue to block your attempts to escape out the door each. and. every. time.  Sorry I'm not sorry!

• Dear A. Liz Adventures, thanks for blogging about the Free Monogram Printable you found on Pinterest!  Because of you, this pretty now adorns our mantel and I feel as though it is finally complete.  Yay!!  Thank you, thank you!

 

•  Dear Aunt Stacy, thank you for sharing your lasagna recipe with me {multiple times}!  I managed to save that email from last time and print it off for safe keepings.  We're having lasagna tonight for dinner - and I'm super pumped!!

• Dear Olympics, I've really grown fond of you over the past week!  You and your athletes and their discipline is motivating!  So far, Swimming, Diving, Volleyball, and obviously Gymnastics are my favs.  

• Dear Erin Gloria Ryan, thank you for writing this hilarious and mildly inappropriate article about every American girls' eye candy during the Olympics, Ryan Lochte.  I laughed hysterically while reading.  If you are easily bothered by language {or content...ahem!}, maybe just skip that link ;)

• Dear summer, please don't leave just yet!  School is quickly approaching, and while I'm always excited for a new beginning, saying goodbye to summer is always a sad, sad song.

• Dear weekend, I'm so glad your here!!  You are, as always, my favorite!

• Dear reader {that's you!}, I hope you have a wonderfully, fantastic weekend!!  :)

Back from the Beach!

Welp, all good things must come to an end.  Alas, our beach trip ended Friday night and I made my way home back to my husband, kitty cat, and house by way of my parents who were breaking up their trip back to Georgia!

We had such a fun week at the beach!!  My family has been beach hopping for the past few years and haven't found one to call our "own" just yet.  Last year we visited Corolla, in the Outer Banks of NC.  Carolina Beach might just be in the running to be "our beach", though!  We really enjoyed our stay there!  It has such a small beach town feel, but yet, lots of good restaurants within a 5-10 minute drive.  

We had a great 3 story house 2 blocks from the beach.  Every day we'd set up our tents nice and early and mosey on down usually sometime after breakfast and before lunch.  It was so nice to enjoy a leisurely pace, so different from life at home!

I didn't really blog or tweet much, just a few Instagrams here and there.  It was a nice technology break for a bit!  Sometimes just necessary during vacay!

We enjoyed lunches on the beach and on the pier, taking turns cooking dinner, going out for dinner, playing Settler's of Cataan, filling out the baby pool for Josh & Callie's new addition, laughing at all the entertainment the kids provided, laughing with each other, shopping, eating way too much, and just soaking up sweet moments together!

My heart is full!

Here is our week in pictures...

Waiting at the SeaWitch for our house to be ready last Saturday!

Gorgeous view from the upper deck of our house!

Once we got settled in the house we headed for the mad house also known as the grocery store!  Time to stock up for the week for 16 people - that equals a whole lotta groceries!!  That night no one was cooking though, we ordered amaze balls pizza from Uncle Vinny's!!

Just chillen with Mimi :)

Uncle Scott & Aunt Stacy vs. Rob & Gale in Ladder Golf

Ladder Golf was by far the best purchase we've made so far!  Everyone had so much fun playing at the beach!!  B and I remained undefeated the whole week :) pros pretty much!

view from our tents

A man and his hole

Jude in the hole.

Drinks for the week :)

Playing Settler's of Cataan...

...and taking ridiculous pics, obvi :)

Including a few with CamWow..this one was too good not to
share!  Haha

B passed by our Shack on his run :)

Rockin' Uncle B's sunglasses

Beach!

Monday night we tried out Michael's Seafood Restaurant!  I highly recommend it!!  Best Chowder in the world apparently, and pretty great shrimp and crab legs in my opinion :)

Wells mean muggin' waiting on dinner

The many faces of Uncle Scott

Josh & Callie

Dinner is served and then devoured!!

Mmmm Mmmm Mmmmmm I love crab!  Crab Crab Crab

Couples at dinner!

Tuesday morning photo sesh with nieces & nephews :)

Diggin' again with Uncle Brandon

We brought out all 3 tents Tuesday as my Uncle Steve, Auntie Anne, Cousins Nikki, Betty Anne & Scott and their baby James made a day visit from Raleigh!  Of course I failed to take any pictures of them...ughh!  Tuesday was also B's last full day, he left Wednesday morning to work for the rest of the week.  Yuck!

Look at this cutie who stole my phone!

My and my Ro :)

Wells wanted to be buried!  Haha, it was bright!

Our view from the pier for lunch!

Wednesday a few of us walked down and discovered the pier restaurant - you can eat outside right in your bathing suit!  It's attached to the Ocean Grille and we liked it so much, we ate there again Thursday and went to the actual restaurant part for dinner Thursday night!

Uncle Rob & Wells after dinner

Thursday night they have live music on the pier and fireworks!  It was a pretty great ending I must say.

What!?  It's the last day!?!?

Yep, last day :(

Until next time East Coast...