Weathering The Storm

I love living in Florida 99% of the time.  Beaches, sunshine, warm weather year-round...what's no to love??  I'll tell you...tropical storms.  They don't happen often, but when they do, it's a real drag.  I think it has rained for the last week here and we're all over the dreary weather.  Thankfully the sun seems to be making a reappearance as we speak.  I hope we get some sunshine this weekend too.

Despite the rain, we've been able to get in a couple of fun outings like yesterday's trip to Stuart Ceramics with some friends...

...and our trip to art class today to make some adorable Father's Day canvases...

 

We also made a couple of trips in between downpours to go check on our favorite ducks...

I think we need to start taking some bread to them so they'll swim towards us instead of away from us when we come to visit them.  The boys love to watch them swim and waddle.

We got in a run this morning that left us a little soggy but it was actually kind of refreshing and we needed the fresh air...I needed to chance to chat it up with another adult too.  I love my running buddy!  The rain finally stopped at the end of our run and the sun came out long enough for us to snap a picture.  

 Good thing we were close to home, because the heavens opened up again big time shortly after.  One of these days we'll have to get a photo of the rest of our gang too.  

We had lots of yummy food while we've been cooped up...

Those chipotle burgers turned out pretty good.  The boys even ate them which I was seriously thrilled about.  I love that my boys will eat spicy food.  I'm raising them well!  :-)  

I topped mine with guacamole and served it with a side of collards, a couple of pieces of cauliflower, some sweet potato "fries" and homemade ketchup.

They made a repeat appearance yesterday at lunch along with a big green juice since it was slim pickings until we got our produce delivery right after lunch...

I made a DELICIOUS shrimp, garlic and broccoli frittata yesterday morning...

I got to enjoy some of the leftovers that night with my dinner since that boring frozen chicken burger was so disappointing...

...and again this morning along with 2 small peaches and half an avocado...

Thank goodness for leftovers...especially on rushed mornings like today.

Lunch today was pretty darn yummy too...

Spinach, avocado, hard-boiled egg, tomato, leftover turkey burger, and mustard vinaigrette.  

Enough food pictures...oh wait, one more...check out these beets I have prepped and ready for roasting along with a chicken tonight...

YUM!  

With the way they stain the cutting board, it's no wonder everything else gets "stained" as it makes its way through you.  Gross, but true!

Today's day 11 of my Whole30 experiment and I've gotta admit I'm feeling good.  I don't really have any cravings, I've cut back almost completely on my snacking, and when I do, I just have some nuts or olives...a vast improvement from the snacks I used to grab.  I'm sleeping really well and waking up early with energy.  My workouts are still a little sluggish but even that is improving.  People have mentioned that I look more "defined"...I'm not sure I see it but I'll take the compliment.  My stomach has never felt better.  I can definitely see this way of eating as something that could be sustainable with the occasional glass of wine or slice of pizza here and there.  

Even though I've been a little sluggish in the workout department, I did get in a decent lower body workout yesterday...

I did 3 sets of 10 for each exercise and followed it up with 20 minutes of intervals on the elliptical.  Today is a rest day from the weight room.  That soggy run in the rain was good enough for me.  

I'm proud to say I stayed on track with my Bible Study this week too.  1 week down and 7 to go in the study.  It takes 3 weeks to form a habit right?  I'm hoping one forms in the process. 

Painting, eating, visiting ducks, working out, reading and sleeping...that's about as good as it gets right??  Throw in some, I mean TONS, of rain and a DELICIOUS produce delivery yesterday and I'd say we did a pretty good job of weathering the storm.  Off to fold some laundry and then try and finish my book...

So far, I'm really liking the way things are working out for these characters.  Hope I like the ending too...

Fun, Friends, Fresh Air, and A Fantastic Lower Body Workout

We've had a fun, low-key couple of days...ok by me! We kicked off our Thursday bright and early with our running buddies and covered 6 sluggish miles before calling it quits.  I'm always happy when I get my runs in, but that one was a little torturous.  We were both happy to get it over with.

We followed up the run with some food and play time at home.  The boys thought it was so funny to be eating cheese when I told them to say "cheese"...

Mason put a lot of effort into building a tall tower and protecting it from Colton's destructive tendencies...

He was very proud of his hard work.  Mason has some serious determination and kept at it despite Colton knocking it over several times...of course not without a few tears.  You can even see Colton's hand going for it in the picture at the left.  He was very determined too...to knock it down.

Yesterday was a produce day and we got another yummy pineapple to enjoy.  The peaches are PHENOMENAL too.  Lucky us!

The boys got to have a little play date yesterday afternoon while I got to indulge in some adult conversation while enjoying some decadent chocolate cake compliments of the kiddos mommy.  YUM!

How cute are they???

It was GORGEOUS outside yesterday so we finished up our day with a wagon walk and swung by the pond to see if any birds or ducks were enjoying the beautiful evening as well.  

I'm a lucky mommy to be able to call these two my own...even when they whine for most of the ride because they don't want to share the toys they brought along for the ride.  Lesson learne--next time we're not bringing toys along.  Instead, we'll let nature and passing vehicles be our entertainment. 

Today started off nice and early again with a FaceTime chat with the man in our lives before eating breakfast and heading off to the library for some fun with Miss Lisa and the Family Place.  The boys were really digging the coloring this morning...

When they got tired of coloring, the spent the rest of their time exploring the toys, mostly the baby ones, silly boys.  I guess they miss them...

Our next stop was the gym for a fabulous leg work-out.  I was due and it felt good to get it done.  My workout looked like this...

I rounded out my workout with 15 FAST minutes on the elliptical and a lesson on how to do turkish get-ups...my new challenge.  Check out what they look like...

If you go on you-tube, you can see some women lifting some SERIOUS weight with perfect form.  I'm not close to being there yet but it's pretty inspiring.  My next exercise to tackle is the pull-up.  I'm working my way there...I want to make sure I'm doing them properly so I'm taking my time and working on the negative action and also doing modified pull-ups on the smith machine.

Anyways...after the gym we ran a few errands, including a stop at the Fresh Market for natural rotisserie chickens that were 2 for $12, before settling in for lunch and nap time at home.  The to-do list is pretty much tackled and now we're hoping for some downtime and maybe a trip to the park before dinner.  

Happy Weekend!

Monday Special

The boys spent their morning at their play group making these masterpieces...

Mason's

Colton's

You better believe they're hanging in their bedroom already.  So cute!

While they were there, I had the honor of spending my morning with my dearest student who invited me to be her special friend at Grandparents and Special Friends Day at her school.  It was an honor and a privilege to join her.  She's an amazing kid!

It was the perfect opportunity to wear my scarf from Mickey (pardon the self-portrait while at a red light on my way to the event)...

Afterwards, I picked up two fired up kiddos who had no interest in napping whatsoever.  They were much more interested in turning all of their toys into trains...

They did play with their regular trains too by the way.  It's not like they are deprived of the real thing...

They spent a lot of time making music too.  They initiated all this musical play but I have to admit there's a photo contest coming up with their music teacher and I might be snapping away every chance I get in hopes I snapping the perfect shot that wins her contest.  

We managed to squeeze in a quick run with the stroller followed by a cool down with the wagon.  It was too gorgeous outside to resist their pleading.  Check out these cuties...

When we got home, they caught up on their reading...

while I made up this yummy pizza which we devoured...

Kale, roasted red peppers, goat cheese and marinara on a lavash bread...I must say, it was the perfect Meatless Monday dinner and I just may be making myself another one with the leftovers tomorrow.  

On top of everything, we got word from two very special people who experienced answers to prayers today.  What a awesome reminder of how blessed we are!  God is good...ALL THE TIME!

Big Things Ahead

Yesterday at church, our pastor preached about transformations and the awesome ways in which God saves the best for last.  It was a captivating message that really hit home for me, the planner who wants to know what to expect at all times and wants things to happen according to my plan, rather than trusting in His plan.  In looking back on the last couple of years, it's obvious to see that God wants me to work on that area quite a bit.  He laid out the things that have to take place in order for miracles to happen...

• Be obedient.  Don't argue.
• Expect big things.
• Be prepared to go through a process.  Radical transformations come in God's time.
• Remember, the best is always in front of you.  Hello, HEAVEN!

Easier said than done, right?  But SOOO true when you look at all the examples from the Bible.  (He kept referencing the water into wine miracle from John.)  The place where we stop obeying, is the place where miracles stop happening.  His takeaway was this-- The same Jesus who changed water into wine is the same Jesus who can change you.  Look at all he's able to do that.  When you consider all the evidence of what he can do, there's no reason to doubt he can do big things for you too.  Time for me to start trusting Him more and being obedient to his plan.  He's got big things ahead.  SWEET!

After church, we ran a couple of errands, ate lunch,  and the boys took naps which allowed me a chance to lift some weights before it was time to join our friend Jack for his birthday celebration.  What a fun afternoon!  We even had time for a wagon walk before the sun went down.

Oh yeah, yesterday I also booked a little family vacay for later in the year.  Something to look forward to once our family is back to normal.  I already can't wait!

Today I was up with the sun, literally...

The sun has been particularly beautiful the last couple of mornings and nights.   Love it! 

Since I finished up my class over the weekend, I figured I better start studying something else important, the Bible!  This morning kicked off Good Morning Girl's study of Luke.  I'm looking forward to learning from it.

Yesterday we were able to track down one Thomas the Train t-shirt.  Since I refuse to match my boys' clothes, we're still on the lookout for one more Thomas shirt but Mason decided he wanted the monkey shirt with the basketball.  Since the only size they had was a 4T, it looks like he'll get plenty of wear out of it.  They were very proud of their new shirts this morning...

Don't they look like they should be waving from a parade float in the next picture?  I told them to wave to Daddy so we could send the picture to him.  Too cute! 

Our outing of the day took us to our Mom's Morning Out Play group.  It was my turn to work and I had fun hanging out with my boys and their friends.  What a blessing this little group has been for us!   It was interesting for me to see how possessive the boys are of me.  They didn't like me to hold any of the other kiddos.  You'd think they'd be used to sharing me.  Mason didn't want to leave this drum when it was time to go.  The kid loves his musical instruments.

Colton was attached to my hip, worried I was going to leave him behind I guess.  Poor kiddo!

3 hours of serious play time wears the boys out, so needless to say, they are getting in a good nap this afternoon.   So far I've been able to vacuum and skim the pool, exercise with some yoga, get the boys' dinner prepped, and now I'm blogging instead of cleaning the bathrooms.  They can wait til tomorrow.  What would I do the rest of the week if I got all the chores done today?  Haha!

Tonight I get to hang out with some of my mommy friends.  Can't wait!

Loving The Sunshine

We woke up to another beautiful day and couldn't resist the opportunity to take advantage of it by taking a walk to the park.  We had a blast!  Playgrounds are getting more and more exciting for the boys as they get older and more able to check things out.  The big slide is still a bit intimidating though...

 I tried for the life of me to get a good picture of both of them together but they were just too busy!  The swing shot is about the best I could do.  Next time...

With my new healing approach to fitness, the walk to and from the park counted for my cardio (about 4 miles total) and I rounded out my workout with some weights and yoga compliments of Beth at Fit2Be.  I'm learning to love her workouts and am seeing some progress on the condition of my belly.  Baby steps...

They boys wanted to join me in my workout...

Colton understood the concept...

...Mason, not so much!

Naptime equaled study time for me which was followed up with a fun play date with one of our favorite little guys and her wonderful mom.  Thank God for friends!  

Dinner was a breeze since I had thrown it together in the crockpot this morning.  Sweet potatoes, chicken, onions and garlic made for a simple yet tasty meal.  Since it came together so quickly, we still had time for a walk once we were all cleaned up.  What a great ending to a fun day!

I think I'll pour myself a lovely glass of wine after the boys are in bed for the ultimate ending to my day.  Hope your day was lovely as well.