Blog Binder

I think I have just as much a problem with binders as I do with challenges (I'll be posting my fitness binder soon).

So, staying in line with my love of binders, the blog planner was next. I found the printables for this little gem at IHeart Orgainzing's Etsy shop. I printed off the insides and then took them to Staples and had the front and back laminated, the tabs inserted and spiral bound. It cost me a grand total of $6. There are a few sections in there that aren't really applicable to me (brand & client wish list, website enhancements, and shop ideas and wishlist) but, I may find a use for them someday. I do love the majority of it, however. The calendar is my favorite.

I actually use it for more than just blog stuff. I just started using it so, I haven't had a chance to see if it needs tweaking just yet, but if you're looking for a great little planner, this one is compact, simple and pretty :) Head on over to Jen's shop and check it out!

via

*All these are separate sections if you order them. They're just shown all together here to show you all the sections

Oh and if you mozy on into Staples, here is a 50% off Martha Stewart coupon for you to print off and use as many times as you'd like! You'd probably have to do separate transactions, but who cares if you're 'that lady/guy holding up the line'. For 50% off Martha Stewart, it's totally worth it.

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{Book Review} Let Go of What Holds You Back

I've just finished this book up as a recommendation from my girl Danielle over at Butler, Party of 2. I'm no literary critic so, this definitely won't be anything like that. I just want to share the books I have enjoyed (and those I haven't) and what I've gleaned from them. 

So, here are some of my favorite lines from this book (sorry, there's a lot!):

• Momentum - a great word for a powerful life. I believe without a doubt that God's will for you is momentum. He wants you to let go of whatever holds you back. His best is for you and me to grow, increase, and be more than what we are today.
• Lord, give me the determination and tenacity of a weed.
• "Somebody is sitting in the shade today because someone long ago planted a tree" (Warren Buffett)
• You'll be judged by what you finish, not by what you start.
• Nearly all failures result from people quitting too soon.
• "And let us not get tired of doing what is right, for after a while we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't get discouraged and give up" (Galatians 6:9)
• Impatience is costly. Your greatest mistakes will happen because of impatience. Most people fail simply because they're impatient and they cannot join the beginning with the end.
• When you're trying to be like someone else, the best you can ever be is number two
• "God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well" (Romans 12:6)
• You must be uncommon to be a champion. Your responsibility is not to remake yourself but to make the absolute best of what God made. 
• People say they want riches when what they need is fulfillment of a purpose
• When you discover your mission, you will feel its demand. It will fill you with enthusiasm and a burning desire to get to work on it.
• Your outlook determines your outcome
• Talk with people smarter than you. Listen to those more spiritual than you. Ask questions of those more successful than you. Lend a hand to those less fortunate than you. Don't stay where you are.
• Don't make such thorough plans for rainy days that you don't enjoy today's sunshine.
• Don't let the future be a time when you wish you'd done what you aren't doing now.
• Never let the fear of striking out get in your way.
• Do the thing you have to do when it ought to be done whether you like it or not.
• Write it on your heart: EVERY DAY IS THE BEST DAY OF THE YEAR.
• If you wait for perfect conditions you will never get anything done.
• "Keep on sowing your seed, for you never know which will grow-perhaps it all will" (Ecclesiastes 11:4,6)
• "Never complain about what you permit" (Mike Murdock) 
• What you commit yourself to be will change you from what you are into what you can be.
• What you see depends mainly on what you look for.
• "Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it, for that determines our success or failure" (Norman Vincent Peale)
• You'll often find that life responds to your outlook.
• "Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your power. Pray for power equal to your tasks" (Phillip Brooks)
• Even a coward can praise Christ, but it takes a person of courage to follow Him.
• Both enthusiasm and pessimism are contagious. How much of each do you spread?
• Ten years from today, what will you wish you had done right now?
• You can't pray and stay the same.
• If you can stand firm and and when to bend, you've got it made.
• Be passionate about your life, and act from your passion.
• God has put you in this world to pour your heart into something.
• You will only be remembered in life for your passions. Find something that consumes you.
• Learn to be comfortable being enthusiastic. 
• "Perhaps the greatest discovery of this century is that if you change your attitude, you can change your life" (William James)
• People judge you by your actions, not your intentions. You may have a heart of gold, but so does a hard-boiled egg.
• All significant battles are waged within one's self.
• When you compare yourself to others, you'll become either bitter or vain.
• Nothing great is created suddenly. Nothing can be done except little by little.
• Continually compare what you want with what you have and you'll be unhappy. Instead, compare what you deserve with what you have and you'll be happy.
• If something is beneficial for you, God will put it within your reach.
• Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don't forget to thank Him for his answers.
• The highest purpose of faith or prayer is not to change your circumstances but to change you.
• The more you do - the more you can do.

I really loved this book and it was such a shot of motivation. I highly recommend it - it's a quick read.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did :)

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{Another} Fitness Challenge. Okay 2 Challenges.

I clearly have a problem. A 'challenge' problem.

I finished up my 21-Day Yoga Challenge and felt so good, both mentally and physically, that I've decided to up the ante. Yoga has given me an amazing mind-body connection. One that I think was really crucial in me being able to fully commit to a lifestyle of maintaining my health and fitness. Unfortunately, I don't think yoga (at least not the kind I've been doing) will give me the results I'm looking for. I'm sure it would over time, but who has time these days?

I've always been pretty focused on my health and planned everything out myself (I studied nutrition in college and it's always been a passion of mine), but since motherhood, I have really come to like having a plan set-up for me where all I have to do is the work. I want everything spelled out for me so that I don't have to think about it - just do it. I have enough to think about. Whether Charlie is flushing my favorite blanket down the toilet (true story), if Breaker is getting ready to fall out of his swing, or what delightful goody the Golden Boy has decided to bring home from one of his yard sale adventures.

So...

I'm getting ready to take on Jamie Eason's 12-Week LiveFit Challenge. It's definitely intense, but I'm totally excited for it. She gives you the entire 12-week plan, from the workouts to recipes, to motivation and video tutorials. One drawback, or advantage, depending on how you look at it; is that this challenge requires a gym. There's a lot of lifting and unless you've got a full-blown gym in your basement, you're gonna need a gym membership. My gym has a daycare so, this works out really well for me. I get some "me" time to workout and the boys get to play with some new friends. Win-win.

Here's where the 2nd challenge comes in...

In Jamie's program she recommends using certain supplements (she has her own line of them, so go figure). I've chosen to go with Advocare's 24-Day Trim Challenge instead. I've done extensive research and have used these products before (when I played basketball in college) with awesome results so, I'm choosing to go this route.

I'm going to spare you the token 'before' picture until I have an 'after' one. I don't want you thinking I still look like my 'before'! *gasp*

I'll be posting at the end of each week and updating you with my progress. I'd love to have you join me and share your progress as well!

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Yoga & Change

I love yoga. Here I am, just relaxing in comfortable crossed legged enjoying a nice, peaceful practice...

Image courtesy of: Adamr /FreeDigitalPhotos.net

..........Yeah. Right.

First off, no one looks like that after two children and especially not after breastfeeding them - but, I'm not bitter. Nope, not at all. Secondly, there's not a whole lot that is peaceful about my practices. I'll usually have to stop at least once to tend to a crying child or have to put the dogs in their kennels so they'll quit licking me every chance they get.

Even with several distractions, yoga is so wonderfully relaxing, strengthening, motivational and 100% totally necessary for me.

"Yoga is a powerful vehicle for change.
As you build your strength, you start to believe in your own potential."

- Tiffany Cruikshank, yoga teacher/sports medicine specialist

Yoga drives so much that I do and no matter what life brings, it always brings me back to center - well, that and obviously Jesus, but I'll focus on yoga for this post. 

The first class I took was a prenatal yoga class when I was newly pregnant with my first little one. The desire to be healthy for my baby was initially what started my yoga journey and my desire to be the absolute best mom and wife I can be is one of the many reasons that keeps me going.

Yoga has given me the strength, both mentally and physically, to know that I can do anything I put my mind to and focus my energy on. I know that I can be the best wife, a mother, a friend, yogi, anything I want - because of the determination and focus that yoga brings me. It allows me to see a new perspective and appreciate life and everything it brings.

If you've never taken a yoga class, I highly encourage it - unless you're a guy. Guys doing yoga totally weirds me out. I'm sure I'm being naive and I'll catch some flack for it, but either way...still weirds me out.

Oh, and here is a 15% off coupon for my new favorite accessory YogaPaws. They are these amazing little gadgets that help you stick to your mat. They market them as being able to let you do yoga on any surface without a mat, but I keep my practices on the mat :)

Namaste :)

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{Must Read for Mama's} Seriously the sweetest, most heart wrenching letter.

I came across this post about creating 'First Day of School' traditions. It really caught me off-guard as I was expecting to see some insanely difficult and perfectly created craft that only Martha Stewart could accomplish. Instead, I found an incredibly sweet and touching tradition that I cannot wait to start with each of my children - I say that - who am I kidding. I'm going to be that mom bawling on the front steps of the school everyday for the first year of Kindergarten. But I digress.

You can find the original post here at MomastryTM

Here's the 'tradition' that this mom has. She says that you can use this letter verbatim (obviously changing out the name) or tweak it to your heart's desire to suit your family and child(ren) best.

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Dear Chase,

Hey, baby.
Tomorrow is a big day. Third Grade – wow. 

Chase – When I was in third grade, there was a little boy in my class named Adam.

Adam looked a little different and he wore funny clothes and sometimes he even smelled a little bit. Adam didn’t smile. He hung his head low and he never looked at anyone at all. Adam never did his homework. I don’t think his parents reminded him like yours do. The other kids teased Adam a lot. Whenever they did, his head hung lower and lower and lower. I never teased him, but I never told the other kids to stop, either.

And I never talked to Adam, not once. I never invited him to sit next to me at lunch, or to play with me at recess. Instead, he sat and played by himself. He must have been very lonely.

I still think about Adam every day. I wonder if Adam remembers me? Probably not. I bet if I’d asked him to play, just once, he’d still remember me. 

I think that God puts people in our lives as gifts to us. The children in your class this year, they are some of God’s gifts to you.

So please treat each one like a gift from God. Every single one.

Baby, if you see a child being left out, or hurt, or teased, a part of your heart will hurt a little. Your daddy and I want you to trust that heart- ache. Your whole life, we want you to notice and trust your heart-ache. That heart ache is called compassion, and it is God’s signal to you to do something. It is God saying, Chase! Wake up! One of my babies is hurting! Do something to help! Whenever you feel compassion – be thrilled! It means God is speaking to you, and that is magic. It means He trusts you and needs you.

Sometimes the magic of compassion will make you step into the middle of a bad situation right away.

Compassion might lead you to tell a teaser to stop it and then ask the teased kid to play. You might invite a left-out kid to sit next to you at lunch. You might choose a kid for your team first who usually gets chosen last. These things will be hard to do, but you can do hard things.

Sometimes you will feel compassion but you won’t step in right away. That’s okay, too. You might choose instead to tell your teacher and then tell us. We are on your team – we are on your whole class’s team. Asking for help for someone who is hurting is not tattling, it is doing the right thing. If someone in your class needs help, please tell me, baby. We will make a plan to help together. 

When God speaks to you by making your heart hurt for another, by giving you compassion, just do something. Please do not ignore God whispering to you. I so wish I had not ignored God when He spoke to me about Adam. I remember Him trying, I remember feeling compassion, but I chose fear over compassion. I wish I hadn’t. Adam could have used a friend and I could have, too.

Chase – We do not care if you are the smartest or fastest or coolest or funniest. There will be lots of contests at school, and we don’t care if you win a single one of them. We don’t care if you get straight As. We don’t care if the girls think you’re cute or whether you’re picked first or last for kickball at recess. We don’t care if you are your teacher’s favorite or not. We don’t care if you have the best clothes or most Pokemon cards or coolest gadgets. We just don’t care.

We don’t send you to school to become the best at anything at all. We already love you as much as we possibly could. You do not have to earn our love or pride and you can’t lose it. That’s done.

We send you to school to practice being brave and kind.

Kind people are brave people. Brave is not a feeling that you should wait for. It is a decision. It is a decision that compassion is more important than fear, than fitting in, than following the crowd.

Trust me, baby, it is. It is more important.

Don’t try to be the best this year, honey.

Just be grateful and kind and brave. That’s all you ever need to be.

Take care of those classmates of yours, and your teacher, too. You Belong to Each Other. You are one lucky boy . . . with all of these new gifts to unwrap this year.

I love you so much that my heart might explode.

Enjoy and cherish your gifts.

And thank you for being my favorite gift of all time.

Love,

Mama
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As someone who what bullied a lot growing up, this brought tears to my eyes. As I thought about all the times I was made fun of for being tall, awkward, whatever - it just brought back those awful feelings that I hope no child has to feel. I know that many kids do and it just breaks my heart. My kids will never, ever be bullies and I'm going to make damn sure of that. They will learn compassion, kindness and respect for all of God's children - no matter what they look, sound...or smell like. I wish more parents taught their kids these lessons - the world would be a better place.

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{DIY} Face Scrub

I admit it - I'm a face product snob. I guess I should say former face product snob. With my favorite brands being Clarins and Mario Badescu, even I'm surprised at how much I love my new 'face scrub'. I tried this after searching for some DIY recipes for face scrubs. Mostly because The Golden Boy, aka my husband, wouldn't be too entirely pleased if he sees another $110 charge from my absolute favorite place for microderms .  I'm sure there are still a few skin care products (ie: moisturizers and eye creams) that I'll still buy from my favorite brands, but I will forever (as long as it keeps working) stick to this one for face scrubs!

And without further adieu, I present...the really cheap and awesome homemade face scrub.

Ingredients:

Baking Soda

Honey

Lemon

Milk

I used a 1 cup measuring cup and poured in about 1/4 cup of milk. Then added several tablespoons of baking soda until it got thick. Then I added a good squeeze of honey and the juice of 1/2 a lemon. Play around with it and find a consistency that's good for you. Mine was a little too soupy but, I'll use less milk next time; it did however, smell DIVINE.  I had quite a bit leftover so, I used it on my décolletage, shoulders and back. Your skin will feel amazingly smooth - almost a little parched so, I recommend rubbing down with a good body butter for your bottom half and a good moisturizer for your top.  

I will admit that even the little amount of lemon juice I used still gave my skin a 'good burn'. I didn't leave it on for long, but I have heard that lemon juice is a great exfoliator and my skin is definitely feeling smoother today. 

All in all, this was a totally awesome scrub. Plus, the Golden Boy will be totally thrilled that I'm hooked on a less than $1 treatment instead of my usual $55 one. Win-win-win (I hope I have some Office fans out there!)

I should say that I will definitely still be getting microderms and loving every second of that post-treatment oxygen mist, but only when I can embezzle enough cash from the Golden Boy that he won't notice. If you happen to wander in there, Lisa (who owns it - and happens to be my 'girl crush') is AMAZING!

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{Recipe} Quinoa Salad w/ Avocado & Lime

Ok, I know this recipe maaaaay sound (and maybe look) questionable, but it tastes AMAZING. Quinoa is so seriously good for you and super filling. I had a serving of this for dinner tonight and was totally full all night - which doesn't happen easily!

Quinoa, Red Pepper, & Cucumber Salad with Avocado and Lime
Adapted from Yoga Journal - October 2012 Issue. I looked everywhere for it online and couldn't find it... Update: here is the original link - Thanks, Sharon! http://www.yogajournal.com/lifestyle/food/recipes/recipe/11896
Serves 4-6

Kosher Salt
1 cup quinoa
1 garlic clove, pounded to a smooth paste (or do what I did and just buy garlic paste and use a good squeeze of it)
3-1/2 tbs. fresh-squeezed lime juice (I juiced 2 limes, doubt it was 3-1/2 tbs., but it worked)
1/2 cup + 2 tbs. EVOO (I didn't used closer to 1/4 cup total)
1 medium red pepper, halved, seeded and finely diced (unless you have my knife skills, in which case you just chop it)
1 small to medium-sized cucumber (I used a small English) chopped in 1/4" pieces. You'll need about 1/2 cup
1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro
2-3 ripe avocados (I used 1/2 avocado per serving)

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season with salt. (The box usually calls for a 2:1 water to quinoa ratio, but follow box/bag directions)
2. Rinse quinoa under cool water then add it to boiling water and cook until tender (usually 10-15 min).
3. Drain the quinoa well and spread out on a baking sheet to cool. (I didn't do this. I just let it cool in the pan for 20 min or so and if you cook it correctly, there shouldn't be anything to drain so, not sure what's up with this step, but whatever)
4. Whisk together garlic, lime juice, a pinch of salt and EVOO in a small bowl
5. In a large bowl, mix quinoa, red pepper, cilantro and cucumbers.
6. Drizzle lime juice/EVOO mixture on top and fold into quinoa.
7. Slice avocado on top of each serving and enjoy!

I ate this right away and it was delish. I'm sure it will be even better after sitting in the fridge overnight and letting the flavors really melt together.

Enjoy!
Namaste :)

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