Thankful Thursday!

Oh my goodness, is it really Thursday already?!

This summer has proven to be crazy busy for us and we're not even a full month into actual summer.  I have more awesomeness to report, in no particular order of excitement:

1. The sellers of our house agreed to nearly every detail of the inspector's report - meaning that they are bringing almost everything up to his recommendations!

2. I am making progress with work.  Yesterday I did my very first instructor audition in the morning AND taught my first class in the evening!  And everything went great!  Here's me in my now-legit glory sporting my YMCA shirt, post class:

3. I had recently applied to be a #sweatpink ambassador with FitApproach, and I got accepted!  Its a great community of women pursuing fitness, building each other up, and pushing ourselves.  So excited to be part of this!

4. And I have to include getting to see my girls Sara and Andrea on Tuesday.  We don't see other often enough, as I have said, but when we do see each other, its wonderful.  Love these girls.

As you can see, big things are happening in our lives, and the lives of those around us.  It never ceases to amaze me the way that God can re-route the paths in your life once you give your trust back to Him.  He really does know what He's doing!  I've said before that, especially in the last year, I have felt Him telling me to be patient, and sometimes that makes me even more impatient!  But now, it really feels like things are coming to fruition.  Thank you, God.

Take a minute and think on the things that make you thankful for today.  I bet you've got something!

We believe that kicking ass is best done in pretty shoes. We’ve learned that real women sweat, and sweat hard. We know that assertiveness, strength, and ambition are the ultimate feminine qualities. We concede that sometimes it takes hours to get ready, but we’re also no strangers to just rolling out of bed and going. We’re convinced that we run faster in pink shoelaces. We believe in pushing ourselves, and we believe in giving ourselves a break, too. We’re all about the rush of endorphins and the thrill of the challenge. We’re all for looking great and feeling even better. We’re committed to finding our best fit, and making it stick.
We sweat pink.
- See more at: http://www.fitapproach.com/about-2/#sthash.R8RvREzl.dpuf

We believe that kicking ass is best done in pretty shoes. We’ve learned that real women sweat, and sweat hard. We know that assertiveness, strength, and ambition are the ultimate feminine qualities. We concede that sometimes it takes hours to get ready, but we’re also no strangers to just rolling out of bed and going. We’re convinced that we run faster in pink shoelaces. We believe in pushing ourselves, and we believe in giving ourselves a break, too. We’re all about the rush of endorphins and the thrill of the challenge. We’re all for looking great and feeling even better. We’re committed to finding our best fit, and making it stick.
We sweat pink.
- See more at: http://www.fitapproach.com/about-2/#sthash.R8RvREzl.dpuf

We believe that kicking ass is best done in pretty shoes. We’ve learned that real women sweat, and sweat hard. We know that assertiveness, strength, and ambition are the ultimate feminine qualities. We concede that sometimes it takes hours to get ready, but we’re also no strangers to just rolling out of bed and going. We’re convinced that we run faster in pink shoelaces. We believe in pushing ourselves, and we believe in giving ourselves a break, too. We’re all about the rush of endorphins and the thrill of the challenge. We’re all for looking great and feeling even better. We’re committed to finding our best fit, and making it stick.
We sweat pink.
- See more at: http://www.fitapproach.com/about-2/#sthash.R8RvREzl.dpuf

Some Randomness....

Today is going to be a little crazy for me (more on that later), but my new blogger friend Courtney over at Eat Pray Run, DC tagged me in an ABC get-to-know-you kind of blogging game, so here are some random facts all about me!

A. Attached or Single? Married
B. Best Friend? The originals would have to be my dear girlfriends from high school, Andrea and Sara.  But there are so many women that I have had the privilege of calling friends who will forever be an important part of my life.
C. Cake or pie? Cake.  Vanilla.  Nothing beats a TRUE vanilla.
D. Day of choice? Saturday OR Sunday.  I love our loungy uneventful mornings.
E. Essential Item? Gym shoes.
F. Favorite color? Green.  Used to be pink.  I do still love me some pink, but I think I love green a little more now.
G. Gummy bears or worms? Gummy bears all the way.
H. Home town? Born in Fort Worth, Texas, but raised in Anna, Illinois, population about 5,000.  Small!
I. Favorite Indulgence? Pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks during the fall.  Nothing beats it!  Or bacon.
J. January or July? July.  I hate the heat and humidity, but not as much as I hate having to put on 5 layers.
K. Kids? A sweet 2-year-old little boy, James, and our fur-baby Bailie, our husky mix rescue.
L. Life isn’t complete without? Coffee.  Not kidding.  Take away my smartphone, my computer, whatever.  Just don't take away my coffee!
M. Marriage date? July 3, 2010
N. Number of brothers/sisters? 1 brother
O. Oranges or Apples? Definitely apples.  Orange pie anyone?  I don't think so.
P. Phobias? Scary movies.  I'm not afraid of much, but I detest horror movies.  Even the cheesy ones.
Q. Quotes? Philippians 4:13.  I often repeat this in BodyPump when I feel I can't go on.  John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
R. Reasons to smile? Grace of God ..... and add in that I'm a mom, God has given us a house in the timeframe we hoped for, and I'm getting paid to do one of my favorite things - work out and design workouts!
S. Season of choice? Fall.  Its the best.
T. Tag 5 People @AllisonWillTri @ROJRunning @toocuterunner @carichristenson @pavmntprincess
U. Unknown fact about me? I don't know how "unknown" this is, but having a career in fitness is a new venture, developed in the last few years.  Have you ever seen the movie Gothika with Halle Berry?  I wanted to be her in that movie.  A far cry from being a fitness instructor/trainer.  Funny how things change.
V. Vegetable? I pretty much love them all, so I'm going to go with broccoli.... side note, I had to type that 3 times before I got the spelling right.
W. Worst habit? Probably managing my time.  Having a kid really makes you extra lousy at that.
X. Xray or Ultrasound? Had both.  Obviously ultrasound with my son, and xrays for various things - dental, orthopedics, etc.
Y. Your favorite food?  I love food.  LOVE food.  If I could only ever have one thing, I think I would pick chocolate covered bacon.  Sound weird?  Go try it.  Then come back to me and tell me how awesome it is.
Z. Zodiac sign? Virgo... unless they enforced those "new" zodiac guidelines, in which case I'm a Leo.  I'd SO rather be a lion!

So there you have it!

I'm still here...

Hello, friends.  My goodness life has been crazy!

I had to keep it a secret, but we went on a surprise vacation last week!  It was a wonderful time, and we were able to surprise James's grandparents.  Wonderful trip.

But!  Life is getting real.  Last night I observed a class that I will be teaching tomorrow night - yikes!  And tomorrow morning, I will be doing an "audition", or as I prefer to call it, a class demo, at a different location.  I'm still putting everything together, but after I get through today and tomorrow, I have some fun things to share with you, so if you follow me, stay tuned!  I haven't disappeared, I'm just adjusting to busier life right now - but its wonderful!

Thankful Thursday!

You know how people say that bad things come in threes?

Do you think that's true of good things too?

I shared with you last week that we made an offer on a house that was accepted and that I had some things happening on the job front.  Well, the momentum has not stopped!  Let me start from the beginning.

On Tuesday morning, I got a call that I am definitely being hired at a local YMCA - yes!  I actually have my orientation tonight, so that's quite exciting for me!

Also on Tuesday, I interviewed at another Y, and got the message yesterday that they would like me to go ahead a demo a class for them - obviously I am nervous, but really excited!

Yesterday we had our home inspection.  Wow, as first-time home buyers, you learn a LOT.  You also get excited for things that you could have never imagined being able to find exciting (the furnace is practically brand new? score!).  Thankfully, though there are a few major issues that need to be dealt with, none are deal-breakers and many are things that a certain Papa could probably help us with on his next visit (hey, the man enjoys being handy and we're only happy to oblige, haha).

And speaking of James's Papa, I'm so thankful that I could call him at the drop of a hat when I clogged our garbage disposal.  Thank you Papa!

And finally, I am SUPER thankful for this girl for taking care of James during my job interview and our home inspection.  It really made life much easier.  So grateful!  And it doesn't hurt that James loves her girls.

Oh!  I almost forgot.  I had my second orthopedic follow-up yesterday and have been cut loose from physical therapy.  That's pretty awesome!  I spoke to my physical therapist about it yesterday and we agreed that our time was enjoyable but hopefully we don't have to see each other again in that setting.

I sincerely hope you're having a great week.  Even during the tough times, there is always a light hiding somewhere.  My life has definitely not always been chocolate (I know the phrase is 'peachy', but I like chocolate much better), whether that was because of my own choices or outside forces, but when awesome things happen, you've got to take the time to acknowledge their greatness, and who they come from, big or small.  Have a great day!

Tasty Snack Tuesday - Carrot Cake Powerballs!

These are seriously so good.

Well, if you life carrot cake, that is. *(If you don't, see my note at the end for a substitution.)

I recently ordered produce from my local co-op, and happened to get a nice bunch of carrots.  I had been saving this recipe for the next time I actually remembered to grab carrots at the grocery, so what timing!  Side note - if you have a local co-op, you should consider using them.  In our area, there are pick-up locations EVERYWHERE.  The one closest to me is about 2 miles away, and for $21.50, I got a TON of high-quality produce.  Definitely a fan!

Carrot Cake Powerballs

10 dates, pitted and chopped
6 tablespoons cashew butter (or nut butter of your choice, but I love cashew butter for these)
1 cup dry oats
3 carrots, peeled and chopped small or grated
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2-1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4-1/2 teaspoon cloves
3/4 cup shredded coconut

Add all ingredients but the coconut to a food processor and process until well-combined.  You should have a thick paste.  If you find the "dough" too sticky to work with, put it in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.  Then roll it by the tablespoon into balls and coat with coconut.  You can either store these in the refrigerator, but I like to keep them in the freezer.  They will not freeze completely solid and are a perfect cold treat on a hot day.  I got 27 balls out of this recipe.  Each one will set you back about 60 calories - not bad!

 

I would love to experiment with adding a little vanilla protein powder to these and making them into a protein treat.  But, just as they are, these are delicious!  Make sure to start out on the low end with the spices though - you know I love cinnamon, but sometimes the other spices can be overpowering, so add them in small amounts at first and adjust to your taste.  Enjoy!

*If you do not like carrot cake, consider adding dried apple rings in place of the carrots - I haven't tried it, but I think it would be delicious, reminiscent of apple pie maybe.  And you can't go wrong with that!

Recipe from Powercakes via MizFitOnline 

Feeling SOOOOOOOO Blessed!

We had a crazy Thursday evening and Friday, full of so much blessing (and busy-ness, since I missed my somewhat usual Friday post) that I simply cannot wait until next Thursday to share it with you.  Allow me to break it down for you:


1. We have been casually looking to buy a house.  We looked at one that I felt could be our house, but it just was not.  But then, seemingly out of the blue, came our house.  To sum up a ton of details, we looked at the house on Thursday evening, it was very clearly our house, made our offer Friday morning at 8am, and got the call that it had been accepted at 9:30am.  So it looks like we are going to be homeowners in about a month!  To say that this is a blessing is an understatement.

2. If you can remember some time ago when I asked you to pray for a miracle or two for someone close to me, that miracle happened.  My mom got a job, and something she really needed and wanted!  That's huge.  HUGE!  Thank you for praying.

3. I posted this yesterday on Twitter, but in case you didn't see it, I'm now a Fitmark Ambassador!  Once a month, I'll have the opportunity to blog for them about one of my loves - fitness!  Super exciting.

These last two were completely the icing on my day:

4. After our usual BodyPump class, a woman I met there some time ago and chat with sometimes gave me one of the greatest compliments I could ever ask for - she told me that it shows that I want to teach fitness and help people because of how I act with others in the class.  That just made me feel awesome.  If you're my friend and have started coming to classes with me, its so exciting for me!  But then I go into a natural instructor mode (even though I'm not there yet, professionally), and I just want to help you be your absolute best, but I worry that it can come off as obnoxious or that it might make you uncomfortable.  So for Carla, who said this to me, to tell me that just made me so happy.  It made me feel like maybe I can be like my two favorite Pump instructors in terms of having the following they have (if you're reading this, you know who you are!  And you know people love you!).

5. And finally, we were planning a quiet night, just getting ready to head to California Pizza Kitchen and celebrate our house news.  Then some awesome friends called, then more friends called, and in short, we got to spend the evening with all of them, and it couldn't have been any more wonderful (even with kids whining, crawling on the floor, making messes... its all good!).  Here's a picture of the mommies:

I love these ladies.  I am so blessed to call them friends.

So yeah... It was a great day!!

I hope you're off to a great weekend!  I have a fantastic recipe to share with you soon, so stay tuned!

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful for so much that I didn't know how to title today's post.

So much to be thankful for:

It looks like we will be unaffected by the government furlough.  That's HUGE.

I have a job interview next week!

I got a call back from a different job interview that I thought was not going to turn into anything (still waiting for details, but still, thankful!)!

Still making awesome progress in physical therapy.  Very thankful for a great therapist.

Working out with friends happens all the time now.  Nothing better!

We successfully phased out the pacifier and it hasn't been too bad.  Yes!

Old friends.  If you read this and think, is she talking about me?  Yes!  You know who you are.  I miss you and love you.

What are you thankful for today?  A lot has been happening to those around me on the job and home fronts, so I know we all have something.  That's awesome!