Top 5 Favorite Christmas Moments of 2018

Happy Friday and happy New Year's Eve weekend! This will be my last post about Christmas of 2018 (I promise), but this was seriously our best Christmas with Brayden to date and so many fun memories were made! This was the first year that he understood about the true reason we celebrate Christmas. This was also the fist year he really got into ripping the paper off of his presents!

It was hard, but I managed to narrow everything down to a "top 5" favorite moments of the weekend and although I already blogged about our Christmas twice already, I just had to do so one last time!

#1 Spending Time With Family

This is almost always a given, but I really truly enjoyed spending time with all of our family over the holiday weekend! We were able to visit with my brother and his wife in Texas as well as Jason's family and extended family here back at home. It truly was a great time! 

#2 Christmas Eve Orangetheory

This might sound kind of silly, but I had the opportunity to work out at Orangetheory on Christmas Eve with my sister-in-law and although the workout was TOUGH, I enjoyed the challenge and working up a sweat on Christmas Eve! This workout was different in a way that made it challenging but fun. Everyone pulled cards from a tin throughout the class and the card told you what workout to complete. Some cards were harder than others (coal) and some were a little less challenging (present).  I pulled so many coal cards it wasn't funny. Mine even included the treadmill with a run at a pretty decent pace with a 12% incline. (I might have been holding on for dear life!) My sister-in-law ended up pulling a 2,000 m row card and she completed 55 burpees by the time it was all said and done. Needless to say, it was a great workout and I enjoyed the change!

#3 Brayden's First Gingerbread House 

Although this was Brayden's third Christmas, we still had a few "firsts" for him, including his first gingerbread house! This gingerbread house was themed towards The Grinch (of course) which made it even more fun! He mostly helped his Aunt put the decorations on the house and I was amazed at how long this task captivated his attention. In all, I'd say this was a successful first for him! 

#4 Cookie Contest

Speaking of gingerbread, our family did a really fun Gingerbread decorating contest where we asked our Facebook friends to help us vote! In the end, Kayla's "Mrs. Santa Claus" (top right) ended up with the most likes for the win! This was a really fun activity to do with all of our family together!

#5 "Grinch Cakes"

On Saturday, we took Brayden to Ihop for breakfast and the look on his face when this plate of "Grinch cakes" was set in front of him was hilarious! They were a HUGE hit and he loved them! This was such a fun morning for all of us! 

Memories like these are what make the Christmas season so much fun! As the years continue on, I can't wait to see what they have to bring! 

If you'd like to see more from our Christmas weekend, check out the video below!

I hope this Christmas season brought lots of fun memories for you, too! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Friday Five

Happy Friday! It's so great to see another weekend, especially since most of last weekend was spent in bed for me, but more on that later.

We've had some fun things happening around here this week, so I thought I would share them in a Friday Five format!

#1-The Weather

Have you seen those memes going around about fall in the south? They say things like "oh yay it's fall - let's get out the pumpkin spice and scarves and boots...just kidding we live in the south, it's basically like summer but with lots of orange." Yeah, that's 100% life for real. Well, it began yesterday, but we've officially had our first cool snap of the season! When I walked outside yesterday morning, I was shocked to feel the cool breeze - the temps were in the 60's and it was glorious. Of course it warmed up to the mid 80's by the time the sun came out, but we won't discuss that.

Also, we might have made our first pot of gumbo last night! It was delicious!! Gumbo and cool weather are synonymous down here in southwest Louisiana!

#2-Superhero Commercial

On Monday afternoon, I met up with a group from our church to shoot a commercial for our church news segment. At the end of the month on the Sunday before Halloween, we always throw a big "Superhero Sunday" shindig where kids dress up as their favorite superhero (which could be anyone that you "look up" to) and it's always a fun time.

To promote this event, we made a commercial for our Sunday church news. They had me dress as Wonder Woman and I had to run all over the place which was lots of fun of course.

I can't wait to see how it turned out!

#3-Workouts

Sadly, I spent the entire weekend in bed due to a stomach virus and fever. I seriously felt the same way I did back in January when I was diagnosed with the flu...and the fatigue lingered for days. Yuck. Needless to say, I did not have a long run on Saturday and didn't really return to Orangetheory until Tuesday. Running around on Monday for the commercial was as much as I could stand, so I decided to wait until Tuesday to resume my workouts. Both Tuesday and Thursday workouts this week were great! I also plan on running a long run tomorrow morning in the (hopefully) cooler weather!

#4-Police

This week, the local PD visited Brayden's Mother's Day Out program where they had the chance to see an officer in uniform, check out their motorcycle with the lights on, and crawl through the backseat of their unit. I had my brother (who is also in law enforcement) send a picture of himself in uniform to me so I could show it to Brayden and make that "personal" connection to what these guys do. Brayden was a little hesitant with the officer presentation at first but once the MDO director told Brayden that this officer wears a uniform just like his Uncle Brian, he was ok!

He was so very proud of his little badge and hat! I love opportunities like this where they get to see professionals and hear what they do.

#5-Pumpkin Patch

It's that time of year again! Pumpkin patches are popping up everywhere and we've already visited one! Brayden had so much fun calling out the different colors of the pumpkins he saw and running throughout the patch! We even came home with a little pumpkin as a memory! :) Sadly, the memory card inside of my DSLR camera decided to corrupt and won't allow me to even see any of the pictures I took there (which just means we will have to go back for more). Thankfully, I have the pictures I took on my phone!

I'd say it's been a pretty great week so far! :) Have a great weekend!!

It's FRIDAY!

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The Great China Dress Disaster

Happy Friday, friends! Today, I'm sharing something completely off of the running/family topic, but I hope that it can help someone in the long run.

A couple of months ago, I was suckered in by an awesome facebook ad. This ad boasted a gorgeous and flowy pink and lace dress and my mind instantly went to our upcoming cruise. It would be perfect for formal night, right?

I mean really, look how gorgeous!

After reading lots and lots of reviews, I decided to go for it and order the dress. Look! It even received a "5 star" rating with 81 reviews on their website. Combined with that and facebook reviews, I knew it was the perfect dress for our cruise.

I also carefully considered my sizing options and went with the size I thought would be the best fit for me.

After a few weeks of not receiving my order or even an update on tracking, I sent an email to the company who promptly replied to my email, stating they would have the dress shipped out right away.

When the tracking began to move and I saw that the dress was coming from China, I grew worried it would be a disaster.

Sadly, what arrived wasn't the gorgeous, flowy dress you see in the picture. The dress that arrived was very poor quality, SEE THROUGH, way too small, NOT flowy, and didn't fit up to ANY of the measurements on the sizing chart (it is pretty much the equivalent of an XS which isn't even listed).

Somehow, it had a size "L" tag attached to the inside...but none of the measurements matched up to those listed for a size large.

Instead of a 56.5 in long dress, I received a 52.5 in dress.

Instead of a 30 in waist, I received a dress that had a 26 in waist.

I couldn't even zip the dress up all the way and was beyond incredibly disappointed. I fell in love with the image of this dress and could not get over the very very poor quality.

This company (of course) didn't respond to any of my return request emails and pretty much scammed me out of 40 bucks. I'm definitely grateful it wasn't more because it could have been worse, but I want to warn anyone who is considering ordering from them...DON'T DO IT.

After writing a facebook review, I also noticed that this company doesn't allow themselves to be tagged in facebook reviews, hence the reason I couldn't find any negative reviews on my initial search. They also delete negative reviews from their facebook.  It was only after doing a little digging that I discovered the real truth behind Milk and Choco. They product is cheap, fake, and does not add up to what they are advertising.

Interestingly enough, Melissa Rycroft posted a family picture that was taken at the beach and she is wearing something that looks suspiciously like this dress. If it is, I'm glad she was able to make it work because sister, it sure isn't working for me.

Don't do as I did and fall for this ridiculous scam. Stick with your reputable sites and all will be well. Happy shopping! :)

It's FRIDAY!

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Warm Comfort Foods

This past week has been challenging since being diagnosed with the Flu on Sunday morning. My body is SO fatigued and I feel worn smack out. Thankfully, I was able to jump on my symptoms as soon as the first signs started showing themselves which I think has helped in the long run. On Tuesday evening, I couldn't walk around my house without having to sit after just a few minutes on my feet, so I knew I needed at least one additional day off of work. Sitting around doing nothing all day is NOT my cup of tea but I honestly haven't been able to do anything else, physically. I went back to work yesterday which was ok - I was definitely fatigued and had to sit a lot but I somehow made it through the day.

I'm pretty sure I've never had the flu in the past - and since I can't remember, that probably means no...because I know I'll never forget this! My lower back ached like crazy and my legs felt like I'd just run Dopey Challenge all over again. I also had sinus congestion and extreme fatigue. Oh yes, and I somehow managed to lose 5 pounds over all of it! Thankfully, I was pretty much over the flu itself in about 4 days, although the sinus congestion and fatigue are still lingering.

Something I learned from all of this is that comfort food is definitely a necessity and warm, nourishing soup seemed to hit the spot every time. My mom was so generous to make a big pot of homemade vegetable soup for me, which was delicious! 

Another staple over the past several days has been chicken noodle soup.

I definitely survived off of chicken noodle soup and Gatorade the first few days...

...and had I been closer to a McAlisters, I would have requested a bowl of their broccoli cheese soup!

Another two favorites are taco soup and potato soup, both of which I might have to make before winter is over!

I hope you are all staying well and sickness free this winter season!

What's your favorite warm, comfort food when you're sick or feeling under the weather?

It's FRIDAY!

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Christmas Traditions

How on earth is it only four days until Christmas?! FOUR?? This season has literally flown by so fast! If you missed it, I've been sharing a glimpse of our holiday weekends over on my youtube channel so go check that out if you're interested! :)

Jason and I have been married for 11 Christmases now and each year, we've held on to several traditions with both mine and Jason's side of the family that are near and dear to my heart.

For starters, Jason and I always decorate our tree the weekend before Thanksgiving. I know it's early, but I love to hold on to the holiday season as long as I can!

One of the best things to do during the Christmas season is watch Hallmark/Christmas movies on the TV and sit in a darkened room with the soft glow of light from the tree. LOVE it!

On Christmas Eve, I usually have my family over for Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Rolls. This year, our tradition is expanding to a full blown "brunch" and will take place on the 23rd! Can't wait!

Another favorite tradition is a family group picture - we always take a serious and a funny one and they crack me up every year! We have a tradition Thanksgiving type Christmas meal at my dad's house for Christmas and I look forward to it every year! He is a good cook, y'all! We also open gifts and play board games and it's just a crazy fun good time!

My family is above and Jason's family is below...

We sure know how to have a good time! Hah!

Jason's family tradition is usually held on Christmas Eve (although it will be on the 26th this year) and includes a dinner of fajitas. After dinner, Jason's grandmother reads the Christmas story from Luke and we open gifts. It's such a loving and warm time of being with family!

The night before Christmas is also a fun movie time for us! We always try to fit in a viewing of Christmas Vacation and before heading to bed, I HAVE to watch NSYNC's Holidays in Concert as well as a favorite from childhood - A Disney Channel Christmas! Yes, both are on VHS and I definitely need to convert them to DVD here soon...

Since having Brayden, our Christmas traditions have only begun to grow. I love watching the wonderment in his eyes over the lights and sounds of Christmas, especially as a toddler now! My sister in law took this picture last year and it has since become one of my Christmas favorites!

We are so excited for all this Christmas has to bring as well as future Christmases to come! There's nothing quite like seeing Christmas through the eyes of a child!

Merry Christmas, everyone! 

It's FRIDAY!

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Marathon Training Truths

It's been several years since I last ran a marathon. In that time frame, I feel as if I've forgotten so much about the training cycle - long runs, fueling, aches and pains, etc. Now that I have waded into the shallow end of the pool so to speak with Dopey Training, there's a few things I realized about training for a marathon that I'd forgotten from prior training seasons...so ready or not, here they are!

 

• It's called a training "season" for a REASON. You can't build up your mileage overnight and it takes weeks and months to "get there". I've always trained myself to be 10K or Half ready at any point but I definitely don't run anything over 10 miles on a regular Saturday morning long run (and lately it's been 5 or 6 miles). Knowing where I'm at and how far I have to go kind of makes me a little nervous but I know it'll be ok because I have the luxury of time until January of 2018. I love how Jeff Galloway's training plan allows plenty of weeks for marathon and Dopey training, that way runners are ready and prepared come race day!

• Weight loss isn't always possible during marathon training and that's OK! It's so important to properly fuel your body with the intake it needs to get you through those long runs. The focus during this time frame should be on nutrition and proper intake, not cutting carbs or calories.  

• Mantras and songs can be a runner's best friend. In the past, I've always had a "song" that made me look forward to a race experience or race weekend. Any former Jonas Brother's fans out there? Rolling your eyes yet? Yep, me too. Well, during the time of my obsession, my "song" for the Inaugural Wine & Dine Half (which was at night) was "Feelin' Alive" by the Jonas Brothers. "This is the night...for feeling alive..." I have to admit, that just made me smile a little bit! :)

• Visualization helps SO much with training. There are times during long runs where I don't think I can keep going, so it's fun to check my mileage and try to visualize where I would be on the marathon course at that point in time...like running through the castle, Animal Kingdom, or Wide World of Sports to name a few!

• Last but certainly not least - it's not easy but it's definitely doable! I'm a firm believer that you can do ANYTHING you put your mind to. Twenty six point two may seem like a daunting task (or forty eight point six in this case), but if you take it one step and one mile at a time, you can do it! The human body is such an amazing thing - it can do way more than we give it credit for. Put away those negative thoughts and do the things you think you can't do!

What's your best Marathon training truth or tip?

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Favorite Summer Treats

Happy Summer! Although it's felt like summer here in Southwest Louisiana for weeks now, I can officially say that summer has arrived in full force, complete with a tropical storm! What a way to kick off the season. The portions of Tropical Storm Cindy (the "eye") that hit SWLA only left us with minimal flooding, although other areas of the south can't say the same. Sad face....stay safe, guys!

By Thursday afternoon, all remnants of the storm will hopefully have passed through so life can resume as normal, including Dopey training!

With summer's heat and humidity and all things related, I like to enjoy a cold, sweet treat on occasion, especially after a hot run. I'm a sweets fan (bad, I know) and after a long Saturday run in the ridiculous heat and humidity, I usually crave all the cold things!

#1 Fruit

Strawberries, blueberries, watermelon, kiwi, grapes, bananas...you name it, I love it! Watermelon is definitely a summer favorite for sure!

#2 Gatorade

I guess it's not truly a "treat" but it's a necessity for me on long hot summer training runs, especially while training with longer distances!

#3 Snoballs

Hello...who wouldn't enjoy one of these after a hot long run?! They are the perfect way to cool down, although you have to eat fast if you're attempting to enjoy it outside!

#4 Smoothies

I know I mentioned it on Monday, but a local juicery opened here and oh my goodness...so many healthy and delicious options were available. I know I'll be a frequent visitor here this summer for sure! Also, nothing beat a nice homemade cold smoothie with a frozen banana and a little fruit...pure heaven!

#5 Iced Coffee

Aaaah yes...a nice cold coffee on a warm summer morning is the perfect way to begin the day! I enjoy these often during the summer!

With all of these yummy treats, I'm destined to survive marathon training during the hot and humid summer months!

What's your favorite summer treat?

Beat The Heat

Hello and happy Friday! It's June, people! How did this happen already? Summer is definitely upon us here in the south, too. Our mild and cool May has disappeared and the temps are rising fast!

Modifying a workout or a run to beat the summer heat can be tricky, but I've compiled a list of several ways to do so!

#1 Run early

Is it fun to wake up before dawn on a Saturday morning to go for a run? No...but when the summer heat is upon us, it's necessary. Even though Saturday is my only day to "sleep in", I still love waking up early and going for a run. It's such a peaceful time of day and the sunrise never disappoints! 

#2 Modify your routes to include water stops

Personally, I haven't found a hydration belt that I like - there's just something about the sound of water sloshing around behind me that drives me bonkers. Instead, I've discovered several routes throughout my home town that include a water fountain or two. Now that my running group has disbanded, a few runners from our crew have also come together to put water and gatorade coolers around town on Saturday mornings (which will be nice during marathon training season)! 
 

#3 Replenish those electrolytes

Salt tablets, salt packets, gatorade/powerade - make sure you're replenishing those electrolytes that were lost during your workout. This is so important for recovery, too!

#4 Wear cooler clothing

Summer friendly clothing is a must - sweat wicking, tank tops, shorts, etc. Moisture wicking clothing will help your body cool down faster after a run on a hot summer day. Most importantly, don't forget the sunscreen!!

#5 Eat yummy summer foods

So this one is not a must, but it sure is fun! Who doesn't enjoy a nice, sweet, cool watermelon after a long hot run?! This goes for oranges, snoballs, grapes, cantaloupe, too...you get the picture!

Happy (cool) running!


What's your favorite way to beat the summer heat and maintain a workout schedule?

It’s FRIDAY!
Link up with Running on Happy & Fairytales and Fitness for the Friday Five 2.0 linkup!