Friday Favorites

Hola amigos! Happy. Freaking. Friday! Phew, this week was a doozy. Nothing in particular happened but it seemed to go by at a snail's pace. Speaking of, the other day I told my coworker that he was moving as slow as pond water and he busted out laughing. Please tell me I'm not the only one who says this saying?? Okay, I digress. Today I'm linking up with Andrea, Erika, and Narci for Friday 

Favorites!

ONE

Ahhh, how fun it was to a) blog unusually on a Tuesday and b) reminisce about my childhood to link up about our home towns. Andrea posted Google Map pictures of her childhood homes and I thought that was a great idea! I was sad I didn't have a picture of my childhood home to share. It made me realize that when I go home next I need to take a good picture of my home so I can remember it forever. Well Google Maps was a FAIL. I screenshotted it with the sound box showing and you can't see my house AT ALL. Sigh.

TWO

Tuesday, March 8th, was International Women's Day. Even though I believe we deserve and need way more than a day a year, it's still an incredible opportunity to recognize the strength, courage, intelligence, etc that women possess around the world! It got me thinking about the women I surround myself with and how they impact my life. Here are a picture of my closest girlfriends from college...

...thinking about it I was floored with how much we embody about the strength of women. For instance our careers (from left to right), Vet, Lawyer, Nurse, Engineer, and Finance. Wow, how incredible is that? I'm so grateful that I surrounded myself with such intelligent and ambitious friends.

And I would be doing a disservice if I didn't mention my fabulous Momma! My Mom has taught me everything I know. She is strong yet gentle, smart yet humble, and selfless yet tough. I love her and appreciate that she taught me that being smart and being a strong student was okay. I love you, Deeds!

THREE

I mentioned it last week but I've been working on a post that breaks down what I eat on a regular basis. I think it's a great way to keep myself accountable and possibly give y'all some ideas to switch up your routine! Well spoiler alert...one thing I eat a lot of is sweet potatoes. I adore them. I feel like I'm cheating when I eat them! One of my favorite ways to eat them is sliced up and roasted. I blogged about that here. But keeping it real, when I get home after work I don't feel like spending 45 minutes prepping and roasting them because I'm tuckered out. So I've been eating them whole and cooking them in the microwave. 

I was talking to my trainer about how to eat them. I like mine with butter and salt but I know that butter is so bad for you and high in calories! So not knowing what to do, I've just been eating them with salt, which is fine but I felt like there had to be another solution. So she suggested coconut oil. Now let me stop you first, yes coconut oil is very high in calories, but it will take you approximately 5 seconds into researching it to find how good it is for you. Don't believe me? Check here, here, and here. So I tried it and GUYS I'M OBSESSED! It's seriously so delicious and in my opinion, better than butter. Shoutout to my trainer, Sara, for the tip!

FOUR

I realized this week that this month 2 years ago I had an experience of a lifetime in Russia. I am constantly amazed by how quickly time passes. Such sweet memories with great people. I blogged about my trip here. 

FIVE

By far my favorite of the week is being down 5 pounds since I kicked off my wellness journey! I am so proud of myself for dragging myself out of bed at 5 am to workout before work and for making healthier food choices. It's not easy but it's doable and I feel better. 

I feel like I've been able to strike a balance between wellness and maintenance. I've found a schedule and food choices that are applicable and realistic for my everyday life. I don't feel starved or deprived by any means. I can't wait to share some of my changes moving forward! In the mean time, check out my Workout Wednesday post where I show y'all one of my workouts and a wellness tip for the week!

Happy Friday from my little buddy, Winston! I hope y'all have a great weekend and see you back here on Monday! xo

Workout Wednesday

Workout Wednesday is back! What better way to get over the hump of hump day other than a tough workout??? Working out is a great way to kickstart your day so get in the gym, peeps!

A quick disclaimer though, I am by no means a personal trainer, nutritionist, workout instructor, etc. These are workouts and tips I've cultivated from years of working out and striving to be healthy.

If you missed it here are my past 2 Workout Wednesdays...

2/3 Workout Wednesday

2/10 Workout Wednesday 

And for this week...

I mixed up the structure this week. How it works is that you do the first exercise, then the first and second, then the first, second, and third, etc. So basically you start from the top and start all over and add on another exercise. 

So to break it down for you...I usually start any workout with 2 minutes on the treadmill. I usually do 6.5-7 but chose the speed that's most comfortable to you. For exercise 5, I do what I call 20/10, which is a 20 second sprint followed by 10 seconds of rest for about 2 minutes. So usually what I do is about 8.0 for 20 seconds then jump on to the sideboards for the 10 second rest. It's a great cardio bursts in the middle of your workout. If you have particular questions about certain exercises please comment below and I'd be happy to explain it!

For exercise 7, I'm not sure if that's the technical term for this exercise. Essentially, you lay down with your body flat and an exercise ball in your hands stretched above your head. You then raise the ball up and put it between your feet and lower your legs. Does that make sense? It's a great workout! I actually did it again on Sunday before I posted this and phew, it's a tough one if you move quickly.

For my Wellness tip for this week I'm talking walking. Seems simple, right? I dusted off my old Fitbit and it's been a great tool to keep me accountable. I read an article about how working at a desk job is equivalent to being a smoker. Wow, how scary is that? So that was just the motivation I needed to get up and move more. Since I've committed to moving more, I've walked 10,000 steps at least every single day. Here are some tips to get those steps in...

1. I park far away. My apartment has a parking garage for residents and I live on the 3rd floor. So I park my car on the first floor and walk to my apartment everyday. It's a small change that adds up to some steps. 

2. I do what I can to get the steps in regardless of the weather. It was cold and rainy for awhile in Charlotte so I couldn't get outside to get some steps at night. So what did I do? I walked up and down the stairs of my building and around each floor. Also, a unique thing I did was went to Publix and walked around just to get some steps in haha! I'm addicted.

3. Take the stairs and the longest route of work. When I'm at work if I'm going to the restroom, visiting a coworker, to the copier, etc I take the longer route to get there. My job is also a phone job and so I got a wireless headset so that I can pace while speaking with clients. I'm sure there are some unique things for you to try at work to get some steps in.

4. I make walking a social event. I use it as a chance to catch up with friends who want to walk with me. I also use it as an opportunity to explore Charlotte and see lots of pretty houses. If none of my friends are available to come, I'll go by myself and listen to music or call friends/family and catch-up.   On Saturday, I walked to lunch and jammed to some music. It was a beautiful day to look at all the pretty houses in Charlotte. 

For all my fellow Fitbitters, what works for you? Share below so we can all follow suit! Thanks for reading and see y'all back here Friday when I share my favorites! xo

Show & Tell Tuesday: My Hometown

Lauren, blogging on a Tuesday? It can't be! Oh but it is, my friends! I've been on a blogging roll this week and why jump off the train? I thought it would be a great opportunity for me to share a little about my hometown, the town that raised me, and link up with Andrea for Show & Tell Tuesday!

So at the beginning of my blogging life I blogged about my move and what brought me to Charlotte but I never went into depth about my hometown of Irmo. Oh yes, my hometown has such a beautiful name...Irmo. Sigh. But before I get ahead of myself a little bit of background on where I grew up.

So I technically wasn't born in Irmo, I was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. My parents built a beautiful home there and planned to have roots in Raleigh forever until life had different plans. When I was 4 years old we packed up and moved to Irmo for my Dad's job. I don't have any photo albums in Charlotte with me so I have to work with what I have via Facebook, but this is a picture of 3 year old (sassy) me and my cousins on the front steps of my Raleigh home...

I cannot get over my sassy stank face or that dress haha! In case you're confused I'm the one on the right ;) There's very little I remember about our time in Raleigh, which is why Irmo will always be home to me. Irmo is a suburb that is right outside of Columbia, SC. There's not much there other than neighborhoods, a mall, chain restaurants, and lots of schools. It is a popular area for people to live who commute to Columbia for work. Irmo is admittedly a horrible name. It originated from the two city founders first two letters of their last names combined. Irmo sounds like a hick town but it really isn't haha!

After only a couple of months of living in Irmo, I started elementary school and quickly became acclimated to a new city.

Here's a picture my Mom snapped of me getting off the bus...

 

My neighborhood was up and coming and full of young families with kids my age. It was an incredible place to grow up because you always had a friend to play with. We always had a ton of fun! P.S. I'm the stinker on the right.

It's crazy to me because even after all these years I still stay in touch with my friends from my neighborhood in Irmo even though we all split in our different directions...Charleston, San Diego, Charlotte, etc. 

As I grew up and went on to middle and high school I started to make friends outside of my neighborhood. I think when I look back at my years in Irmo the memories that will stick out to me will be Friday night high school football games...

...spirit week...

 

...just goofing off with my friends...

...school dances...

...being a nanny...

...and graduation.

I think a common thread of all of this is that in the end, my hometown really isn't a particular place, it's where I have all my memories. My hometown is truly when I'm with my friends and family. It sounds cheesy but it is so true. I didn't have this realization till after I graduated college. What I missed the most about going home was being with the people I love, not the geographical location. And here I am now, typing this in Charlotte, North Carolina. I would've never expected this but alas life always has a way of surprising us. Will Charlotte become my new hometown? You know, I'm not sure. I would love to dig my roots in deeper but I can't do that yet, I have a lot to figure out first. In the mean time, I'm loving Charlotte and taking it one day at a time!

Well, there ya have it, a little bit about the towns that raised me! Not to mention, a lot of not so cute pictures of Lauren growing up haha! I hope y'all have a terrific Tuesday and see you back here tomorrow for Workout Wednesday! xo

Parent's Weekend Recap

Howdy folks! How was y'all's weekend? My weekend was pretty low-key. I got the opportunity to go to another Hornet's game Friday night and it might possibly have been the best one yet! The atmosphere was more exciting than usual because it was a Friday night game and it was a neck and neck game till the Hornet's took the lead. 

Part of my lifestyle change was that Friday night dinner was my all out cheat meal. I killed some pork nachos and shared a funnel cake. #Noregrets A huge shoutout to my awesome cousin, Nick, for hooking me up with the awesome seats. The rest of the weekend was full of adulating. I.E. laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, errands, etc. Sigh...

But any who, I'm rewinding it back to the weekend that my parents came to visit the Queen City! We had a blast. They drove up Saturday morning and we stopped by for lunch at my favorite salad shop in the entire world, Chopt. Local peeps, if you haven't been to Chopt then stop what you're doing RIGHT NOW and go. This is not a drill. I'm obsessed. I love it because it's fast, fresh, and healthy ingredients that also are tasty. I knew my parents needed to experience where I spend a lot of my time haha! Yum...

After that we drove about 40 minutes to Lazy 5 Ranch. It's really hard to explain but if I had to sum it up I would call it an interactive zoo. You can choose to either drive through in your car or go on a wagon tour. We drove through it ourselves. It's a 3.5 mile loop where there are tons of different animals roaming around. We bought food at the stand so that we could feed them from our car. As soon as we drove in this ugly cute guy came towards me for a snack.

Here's the thing, I'm terrified of birds so this took a lot for me! There were pigs everywhere and they might've been my favorite. They are so cute. 

There were a lot of deer too! They were extremely skittish. 

So many animals to see...

This guy made himself right at home! I'm cracking up that my Mom's reaction is to take a picture!

WARNING: Lots of animal photos ahead

They told us to not feed the zebras because they are aggressive!

The deer had to be coaxed.

I was so excited she let me feed her from my hand.

Whatta face. 

The picture doesn't do this buffalo justice. He/She was HUGE. 

At the end of the 3.5 mile loop we saw brand spankin' new piglets! They were so adorable!

After the loop there are animals that you can walk around and see. I wanted to feed the donkeys but their teeth terrified me! So I came up with a creative solution...

The people who built me.

The Lemurs were just hanging out.

We had a great day!

That evening, we headed to Dresslers for dinner. Kimm told me how great it was and she didn't lie! All of us thoroughly enjoyed the food, wine, and service. I would recommend it for any Charlotte locals.

My parents brought our family dog, Gracie, with them and she spent the night with me while they stayed in a hotel. It was so fun to have her with me! We were up bright and early for a walk Sunday morning. 

After our walk she was snuggled up on the couch relaxing. I was so happy to have her with me!

Afterwards, I introduced my parents to my church here in Charlotte. They got to hear a great sermon from Pastor Steven about his new book, Unqualified. It was a fantastic sermon that speaks to how God utilized people throughout the Bible who had their faults but through him reveals their purpose to serve God. My Dad bought us all a copy of the book after service. I've already started to read it and will recap it for y'all soon!

That afternoon, my roomie and I went and got pedicures. It was a great way to wrap up a fulfilling weekend. 

Phew, that was a long one! It filled my heart to have my parents come and see a piece of my everyday life in Charlotte. They are my rock. Oftentimes, in the news or from my friends I hear about struggles within families. It is not lost on me how blessed I am to have such fantastic parents. Anyways, happy Monday friends and see you back here soon! xo

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