Dashing Diva Ditches Dairy

June 5, 2015 by bec2point0

Don’t you just love alliteration? Clearly, I do!

Okay, so there are two parts to this post, and one of them is a giveaway! I promise, we’re not giving away dairy. Although, I’ve got some nice brie in my fridge…

Ditching Dairy

If you follow me on Twitter (@just_bec_), you may have seen my daily rants about the struggle of going dairy-free. And if you’ve read this blog for a while, you’ve no doubt heard me wax poetic about my love of cheese. So, how do these things go together? Hint: Not well.

Based on a pre-existing medical condition I have, my new doctors recommended doing some elimination dieting to see if we can determine what causes my issues. (That made it sound super ominous and serious, huh? It’s not, I promise, I’m fine!) And since dairy is a common culprit, that is where they wanted to start. Enter me having to give up all dairy for two months. ALL dairy. Even cheese Even ice cream.

I’ll miss you, buddy!

SIGH.

After a few false starts, I’ve made it through two full days. Not easily, and not without complaint, but I did it. I attempted Whole 30 last year, so it’s not surprising to me how many things contain dairy. But I only made it to Whole 4, mainly because of cream in my coffee. I’ve gotten a few recs so far for good dairy alternatives. I already liked almond milk, so that was cool. Oreos are vegan, so that’s a bonus. American Flatbread Vegan Harvest Pizza is pretty tasty, especially if you put pepperoni on it (don’t judge). And I even made some really delicious Dairy Free Banana Chocolate Chip muffins (those actually are vegan, so does that redeem me?).

With all that said, I can’t spend the next two months eating Oreos and frozen pizza. I mean, I could, but I don’t want to. And depending on how the test goes, this could be a very long term thing.

So, I’m going to need a little help here. Anyone have awesome dairy alternatives? (Meaning cheese or ice cream, because no other dairy really matters, amiright?) Or recipes you love that are inherently dairy-free? A plant based protein powder you love that doesn’t taste like grass? Or if you’ve successfully given up dairy, and you have tips to share, those would also be lovely.

Dashing Divas

Let’s move on to more pleasant topics, shall we? Diva Dash!

If you don’t know anything about Diva Dash, it’s a women only obstacle 5K. Think lots of costumes. Think LOTS of tutus! And some running and climbing on things and fun. And also, think charity. For 2015, the charity partner for the Shape Diva Dash is Girls on the Run. Awesome.

I’ve posted about Diva Dash before. I did my first Diva Dash in 2012. This was pre-Scoot, so to give you some background, 2012 was the year that I started running. I had been Couch to 5King since February, went to Atlantic City in April and did a 7K while Mer and Cam did the half, signed up for a couple of colorful runs over the summer, and when I saw this video, I knew I wanted to do Diva Dash.

Looks so fun, right? And challenging!

So I signed up, with every intention of spending the summer getting ready for obstacles and running. And then July came. And heat came. And running stopped. And by the time September rolled around, I was not at all ready.

I did it anyway, and it was fun, but by the end I was dying, and literally had medics pulling me aside and asking if I was okay. (I was fine, I just get really red in the face). Not exactly the experience I wanted to have.

Still, when sign up time came in 2013, I jumped right on it, planning to spend the summer getting ready. I think you can guess what happened. I went into the 2013 race with so much anxiety, and I wound up skipping a bunch of obstacles because I was nervous. Again, fun, but not the experience I wanted.

2014, I signed up again, and I don’t think I need to tell you what my plan was, or how it went. When race day dawned and it was 95 degrees and I was still suffering from PF, I just said screw it.

So, when I saw the sign ups for 2015, and I got the urge to sign up, I realized something. Diva Dash is my Moby Dick race. I have to conquer it! And, since I wanted to make sure I stayed good and motivated this year, I signed up to be a Shape Diva Dash Ambassador!

What does this mean for me? It means I’ve really got to stick with it this summer, so I can have the experience I want to have.

What does it mean for you? Well, if you live near (or want to travel to) any of the upcoming race locations this year (Washington, D.C. on 9/12, BOSTON on 9/26 or New York Metro on 10/10), you can use Discount Code AXSCOOT to get $10 off your registration. I highly reccommend Boston, since I live there, and that is the race I will be at, and you can come give me a hug.

And, since the Diva Dash ladies rock hard, they are letting us give away one free race entry! Awesome? Awesome. This giveaway will stay open until 6/19/15.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck, Divas!

Coffee Talk (hold the coffee)

June 1, 2015 by Meridith

Yeah, I gave coffee up a few months ago. But you go ahead and grab a cup! I’ll wait.

Okay! So a few weeks ago I was talking to my ten year old kiddo and he said, “I’m so excited!” When I asked him “About what?” He responded, “LIFE!”

What a refreshing and honest answer from him! I mean, isn’t life pretty gosh darn exciting sometimes? I’ve been feeling that way, too, and with good reason.

Why? Well, we’ve got a lot of good going on in our lives. Some meh too, but the good far outweighs the bad. And I feel like I haven’t had a chance to chat with you all in so long, you don’t know a couple of the mundane things (like the fact that I gave up coffee) and the not so mundane things. I’ve blogged about races and products, but not about life.

So here’s a LIFE update!

1. Health

In the past few months I’ve turned up the running because I had four races in May.

What you might not know is that during my last eight mile training run for the Broad Street 10 Miler, I felt the very annoying twingle (that’s a twinge and a tingle, all mixed up together) of my plantar fascia.

Again.

This isn’t the first time I’ve dealt with this stupid pain in the foot so I know all the things that can help heal the heel.

Rest, ice, massage, stretching.

You might notice that running isn’t on the list. But I did the Broad Street Run, a Mother’s Day 5k, and Bolder Boulder.

Smile, though your heel is aching.

I had a 5k scheduled for this past weekend but wisely I decided to skip it. See, I did something smart! Yay me!

My poor foot just needs a break from the constant beating it takes when I run. It’s pissed off and I am well aware of that. So I am going to cool it with the running for the month of June (which does not excite me, I’ll have you know, but I’m aware it’s necessary) and focus on cross training and… food.

2. Food

Food, you are my life now. (Yes, I just Twilight quoted you. I hope you still respect me.)

Let’s talk about this. You might have noticed I’ve been sharing some yummy looking pics on our Instagram lately.

Eggs and fruit, anyone?

Chipotle Lime Shrimp Tacos with Strawberry Salsa – I would push people out of the way for this.

Fish taco bowl (mine’s without the cilantro because ew).

Y’all, this is stuff we are making at home. We haven’t done take out in over a week. This is a big deal!

So what the heck is going on here? Well, I was fairly certain that I would never, ever, ever do a product challenge. I mean, just call me Taylor Swift because that’s how adamant I was about not doing a product challenge.

And yet… here I am, doing a product challenge.

That will teach me. Folks at my gym are participating in the 24 day AdvoCare challenge and that includes my husband and yours truly. I’m drinking the proverbial Kool-Aid, or should I say Spark, and (prepare yourselves)… I’m actually loving it.

You see, I wasn’t too sure what we were getting into when we originally signed up. It’s a 10 day “cleanse” and then 14 day “max” phase. When I heard “cleanse” I envisioned rabbit food and not a whole lot else. But as you can see from the pics, we are eating. Eating like kings and queens, even!

It’s a lot of prep work and planning but I’ve got to tell you, I’m on day 6 as I’m writing this 5/31, and I’m down 5.2 pounds. But more importantly, I’ve got a ton of energy and a renewed sense of accomplishment. Doing the healthy living/eating thing can get sort of rut-like after awhile and this has helped snapped me out of that! I’m hopping up and down (on one foot, to give my left one a rest).

I’ll keep you posted with the final results. We finish the 24 days on the 18th of June.

3. June

First day of June, holla at me! June is really exciting, right? I mean, end of school (for us Jersey folks), long days, sunshine. I love it!

Me with my dear friend Bernadette, 20 years ago.

My 20th high school reunion is this month. If you’d have told me in high school that not only I would be going but I’d be paying over $100 to attend, I probably would not have believed you.

Actually, I would have laughed in your face.

Yet, I’m going. And not only that, but I’m actually looking forward to it. Life is weird. And exciting.

Just as exciting, I’ve been invited to the Disney Social Media Moms event in New York City!

I was very appreciative to be invited to last year’s Philly event and although timing didn’t work out for me to make it to this year’s Florida conference, I’m thrilled that I’ll be at the NYC On the Road celebration.

Disney is very good at bringing the magic along with them and paired with awesome speakers and great attendees, it makes for a party-like atmosphere that cannot be compared.

The new business cards are on their way and I’m hard at work figuring out what I’m going to wear. I’m thinking Disneybounding might just be in order. Zip a dee doo dah!

And don’t even get me started about July!

But enough about me. Now it’s your turn! Tell me about your life. What exciting things do you have on the horizon for June? Will I be seeing you at the Disney Social Media Moms NYC? Or perhaps at my house for dinner (open invite!)?

Megaxe on the Mall

May 18, 2015 by kpjenn

Raise your hand if you’ve ever heard of Kazaxe.

Bueller? Anyone? Bueller?

Well. according to the team at Azuka-Bom, it’s this:

Axe means “positive vibes”, and it is exactly what our whole philosophy at Azuka-Bom is. We want you to have a place where you can feel great and have fun! “CASA DE AXE” = “House of Positive Vibes”.

Kazaxe is a party workout! We use international music you can FEEL rush through you. Dancehall, Reggae, Hip Hop, Soca, Samba, Axe, Brazilian Funk, Southern Line dances, even some Tinikling, haha. And we do not widdle waddle around, we get you moving. If you think “dancing” can’t be a hard workout, I say, you should just try.

Basically, it’s a super crazy-amazing dance workout. Every time I go, I sweat a ridiculous amount and have so much fun. I mean, just check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSqGNYpjVxE.

This weekend, the gals at Kazaxe held a MEGAXE – a giant dance sesh on the National Mall – to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Saturday was a beautiful day in DC, which also meant that it was hot and muggy. Seems like a perfect day to dance our butts off. In crazy rave-hippie neon colors. #logic

My girlfriends and I met up at the foot of the Washington Monument to get our dance on. We decked ourselves out in our best warrior paint and neon and glitter – I felt like Ke$ha. It was amazing.

All of the neon. All over. Everything.

We got things started with a warm-up dance – and while warming up the muscles is important, we were already plenty warm. Needless to say, after one dance, the sweat? It was er’rywhere. Which meant that the neon warpaint was also everywhere.

This Megaxe was amazing – I’ve never been to any other workout class where I’m actively encouraged to twerk. Where twerking is part of the routine. The combination of so many styles of dance is probably my favorite part – and let me tell you, the quads? They get one helluva workout.

I also love Kaza because you don’t have to be a dancer to enjoy it. Yes, the moves look kind of hard and things move really quickly, but you just jump in and do the moves the best you can. All that matters is that you’re moving and having fun. It’s nearly impossible not too. The instructors love what they do and they want to make you work.

All of that dancing in the hot, hot sun meant that in about 45 minutes, I’d downed about 4 bottles of water. So necessary. I could only stay for an hour of this two-hour class, but I wore my heart rate monitor and in an hour had burned something like 900 calories. This workout is no joke. Consequently, I also wanted to eat all the things by the time I got home.

Kaza is for everyone! It’s always so awesome to see so many different people get together to dance, get a good workout in, and have a ridiculous amount of fun. I don’t think we could have been smiling harder, even though we were exhausted and nearly dead. I can’t wait to get back to my next class… one of these days I’ll be able to dance like Beyonce. Some day.

If I Could Turn Back Time

May 1, 2015 by bec2point0

(Feel free to hum along with me. This will now be stuck in my head for days).

Remember back in 2002, when Cher announced her ‘Farewell Tour’? And then it was popular, so she kept adding more shows? And it went on for years? And then she was still around, so it wasn’t even like a real farewell?

Do you think she felt a little silly and overdramatic for her exit theatrics, or wished she’d given more thought to calling it a ‘farewell’ tour?

Probably. (#relatable)

Now, I’m no Cher. I don’t have any ‘cheeky’ tattoos or a fishnet body stocking. I don’t have an Oscar. Or an Emmy. Or a Grammy. But, I do share (HAHA, GET IT) a few things with the singly named, raven haired wonder.

We like the same people.

We change our hair a lot.

And we both mayyyyy have a slight flair for the dramatic at times. But, I could certainly be in worse company, right?

I remember when my mother-in-law retired for a the first time, years ago. I saw her a few weeks afterwards, and I ask if she was loving it. I expected her to say how much less stressed she was, how nice it was to have free time. Do you know what she said?

“I’m bored.”

I didn’t get it then. I have two kids and a full time job. What is this ‘bored’ thing?

I kind of get it now. Without blogging, I found myself bored. I also found myself watching a LOT of reality television. But mostly, I found myself thinking ‘oh, I should write a post about that… oh wait.” And, I missed you guys!

Don’t get me wrong, breaks are nice. And I didn’t spend the whole time watching Married at First Sight (and Arranged and 19 Kids and Counting and Teen Mom), just some of it.

I also used that time to get my head together in terms of what’s next in my health & fitness journey. I had been in a rut for a couple of years, and I really needed to step back and look at where I want to be, and how I want to get there.

I stopped going to Weight Watchers, and started tracking on My Fitness Pal (down 19 pounds, heck yes!). I went back to Zumba classes, took a yoga class, started walking again. I got my butt back in the kitchen and started doing meal prep. I did a lot of reading. And I’m working hard on the internal stuff, too. Loving me. Embracing today. Doing things that make me happy.

And being a chick makes me happy.

So, in short, sorry about that time I got all emotionally dramatic and prematurely announced my retirement. If I could turn back time…

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?

April 24, 2015 by writeitdownjess

Imagine that, in this scenario, Carmen Sandiego is me. Because, well, she is. I mean, I am. We are the same person.

Okay, maybe I haven’t been quite as around the world as this stylish 80s icon, but I have been traveling pretty extensively these past few months.

I have to pause because that sentence isn’t something I thought I’d ever write. If you’d have told me a year ago that I’d be making multiple international trips, I would have laughed in your face. And then I probably would have had a panic attack just thinking about being on a plane for that long.

A fortune I got a week before my first trip. How did it know?!

I’ve been afraid of flying for a long time. It didn’t bother me when I was little, but by my teen years I developed a pretty fierce phobia. I’d dwell on any impending flight for weeks, be physically sick the day of, and basically be panicky throughout the entire flight. My heart would race. My breath would shorten. My hands would shake, tingle, go numb. I’d feel like I was out of my body. I talked my way out of all non-essential flights, and some essential ones, too.

But when I started my new job last February, I knew I’d have to travel occasionally. It made me pause before I accepted the position. I thought, can I do this? And then I thought, can I pass this up? The “no” was stronger with the second question than the first, so I went with it.

Now that I’m on the other side of three opportunities to visit different countries, I realize how crazy I would have been to pass it up. How much I would have regretted it later. My fear of flying stems largely from a lack of control – I don’t have any power over what happens once I step on that plane – but the same can be said for every moment of my life. Maybe an airplane is just a really big, really loud, really high symbol of the lack of control we have over everything.

I’m not completely over my fear of flying. I still get the racing heart and the shakies, and turbulence still sucks, but I’ve made 6 flights across oceans – Pacific and Atlantic – and have dealt with that fear. I’m sure I’ll still get the racing heart and the shakies, but hey, at least I get to see the world in the process, right?

At any rate, I took some pretty awesome pictures (because of the scenery, not because of my skill) that I want to share with you all! I’ve taken two trips to France, which is the country of my heart I swear, and just got back from Seoul, which was amazing and so special since Mister Jess is Korean and our little Bug is half. It was so incredible to be there and see the heritage that is so inextricably part of him.

First, Korea!

One of the fantastic neighborhoods in Seoul we visited. For shopping purposes, of course.

Down we go…

Delicious tofu from a street vendor. SO. Good.

Samwon Garden, an amazingly delicious Korean BBQ restaurant. We ate a lot.

These small plates, called banchan, came with every meal we had.

More Korean BBQ. Seriously, we ate a lot.

You guessed it…more food. Shaved ice with mango and with strawberries. Incredible.

The duty free floor in Lotte Department store (there is also a Lotte Hotel, a Lotte amusement park, etc. Lotte everything). This. Place. Was. Packed. I lasted less than 5 minutes.

Snail masks. Korean beauty is pretty incredible, if not a little…exotic. It was amazing to see all of the local brands. So much innovation coming out of this small country!

Oops. Too much shopping. Next time I’ll need to see more of the actual, you know, sights.

And now, Paris. Sigh. I wish I could rewind to being 20 so I could have lived here for a year. Truly the most magical city.

The view from my hotel in St-Germain-Des-Pres. It was my favorite neighborhood. So quintessentially Parisian!

The pastries? Insane.

The famous Cafe de Flore.

All the buildings were beautiful like this!

“We are all Charlie.”

A lovely winter day near the Eiffel Tower.

Thar she blows! It was bigger than I thought it’d be (twss?).

The Musee d’Orsay. Just spectacular.

Hello!

Just trying to blend in as one of those impossibly chic Parisian women (it didn’t work).

Love locks on the Ponts des Arts.

Le Marais, my other favorite neighborhood. Such a beautiful place – cobblestone walkways, alleys filled with people, sidewalk cafes…and the shopping is AMAZING.

There was lots of graffiti in the city as well, in certain areas.

Sigh.

But at the end of the day (or 12, as was the case with my February France trip), there’s no place like home.

What is your favorite place to visit? Been anywhere fun lately? Talk to me in the comments!

Embracing the Dread… mill.

April 22, 2015 by kpjenn

After five long months – yes, five – I’m finally able to run again.

Like, really run. Not “run for a mile or so and have to stop and walk because my ankle gets sore.”

Because, let me tell you, that version of running barely counts. And is super frustrating. And no matter how much cross-training you do, it’s just not the same thing.

This week marked the longest run I’ve been able to do since #bustedankle happened – granted, it was only a little over four miles, but I felt really good. I didn’t have to stop at all, and my legs and lungs (and ankle, duh) were strong.

I’ve been doing almost all of my running on the dreadmill because 1. pacing is way easier and 2. it’s a lot harder (though not impossible, trust me) to roll your ankle on a flat surface. But, the upside to all of the treadmill running is that it makes speed work a lot easier.

My goal this summer is to really work on pacing and speed. I’m running the Baltimore Marathon in October and I would love another PR and love negative splits even more. So, I’m prepared to embrace the dread. Good ol’ Tready and I will likely be getting very familiar this summer.

Don’t get me wrong, there will be plenty of running outside. I can’t handle long runs on the treadmill. Nothing good could come from that. I would go insane. Also, I like the sunshine.

But, I don’t like humidity… and I do live in a swamp. So, inside running doesn’t sound so terrible. Especially in July. Or August. Because DC is terrible then.

So, here’s to a summer of many more miles and much fewer injuries! Cheers!

What are your favorite treadmill workouts? Tabata? HIIT? Endurance?

I Need a Disclaimer

April 10, 2015 by camoozle

Warning: This post includes gratuitous use of “bad”, or as I like to call it, “expressive” language.

Hi, I’m Cam, I have ADD. I’m not being rude, I swear. It’s just really, really hard for me to pay attention to you. You will probably have to repeat yourself and I will probably not make eye contact for very long. But I promise, I’m not an asshole.

What do you think? I know, it’s a bit rough. I’m still working on it.

As I continue on in this epically disorganized and frantic life I’ve created, I notice ADD poking its nose into my business at the weirdest times. Like when I miss out on important information because I’ve “tuned out.” My lack of focus and impulsive decision-making causes like 90% of all arguments with my gentleman caller, and my mom can’t stand that I wait until the last minute to do things. And my friends, they probably think I’m tied up in the trunk of a car because I’m constantly forgetting to text them back. Living with someone with adult ADD is a challenge. It’s a big cluster of miscommunication and misread signals. So much so, I’ve compiled a list to help my friends and family understand my behavior: Things people with ADD do that aren’t assholish in intention, I promise.

Also, making lists is a strategy I use for organization. I love making lists.

Adult ADDers might exhibit the following symptoms:

1. They make lists for everything. But inevitably they misplace said list or forget the list existed in the first place. This may lead to a second list, or even third list, contributing to a never-ending cycle of lost and found incoherent notes scribbled on used envelopes and napkins.

They may buy more rainbow socks because they forgot they already had rainbow socks.

2. They’re obsessive about organization. They may spend hours and hours meticulously organizing cabinets only to be thwarted by the desire to now, at this very moment, organize the dish towels. This is often accompanied by the irrational fear of “If I don’t do this now, I will never have another chance, ever.”

Warning: They may be hoarders. Who needs that many socks?

Which leads to..

3. They may have a skewed sense of priorities. Everything is the most important task in that moment. This is a hard one for loved ones or colleagues and typically leads to the assholish labeling.

4. Speaking of labeling, they generally say things that are “inappropriate” or as I like to call them, “true.”

5. They frequently… I don’t remember what I was going to write here, honestly. I got sidetracked by my chick Jenn, here at the airport!

It keeps putting us sideways, I don’t know why.

6. And lastly, they just might write their blog post on a tablet in the airport because they were up all night making costumes for their race on Sunday. No minute like the last minute!

How do you stay focused and organized, internet world?

(Make)Up While (Working) Out

April 3, 2015 by Meridith

The idea for this post all started with a tweet.

Followed closely by another tweet.

To refresh your memory, I’m the lady who needs to be told how to wash her face. I’m also the one who is still learning the correct way to apply makeup. Thankfully, Influenster deems me fit to try makeup. Cam always tells me that you just play with makeup and see what looks good; it’s pretty rad to be able to play with things like YSL Mascara!

I’m getting better and better about “putting on my face” as my mom calls it when I’m going out and about. However, the Twitter conversation that followed the tweets above with a variety of pals had me wondering about people who workout with makeup on. I know I’ve personally seen women at races with full makeup and while I am not quite at that level (I’m still working on wearing makeup on the regular), I decided to test Yves Saint Laurent Mascara out for a test run! After all, if it could stand the test of a couple of hard workouts, it can definitely hold up during a night on the town.

Not that I have those very often. BUT IF I DID…

Before putting mascara wand to lash, I needed to learn how to pronounce “Yves Saint Laurent”. Sure I could have taken the easy route and continued to called it YSL, but what fun is that? Plus, I like to pretend I’m French.

Okay, cool.

Now that I knew how to say it, I could wear it. That should be a rule, in general.

First things first: you must know that Yves Saint Laurent MASCARA VOLUME EFFET FAUX CILS (that’s the product’s full given name) smells really, really good. I don’t make it a habit of going around smelling mascara but it’s one of those things that I noticed right away, so I have to mention it. I applied a nice coat to my upper and bottom lashes; it felt light and not clumpy at all.

But how would it hold up during a treadmill run?

I did five miles and worked up a good sweat because I am nothing if not a good sweat-er. Sweat pours from my hairline and down my face, as usual, within the first half mile. I had a white towel that I used to wipe my face throughout the workout and I kept peering at it, scared to see black streaks. I was running but YSL was not! 1 point for you, fancy mascara.

Oh, but I wasn’t done yet. The very next morning the intensity of my workout was cranked up to eleven when I hit the gym with my trainer. I applied two coats, pumping up the lashes and putting YSL mascara to a greater test. That morning was an inside/outside workout and I was sweating profusely.

Side note: I recently added red to my hair and that was running all over the place. Seriously, one of my workout buddies was concerned that I was bleeding. It was not cute. However, my mascara? That stayed put and was cute! Thankfully. So I didn’t look like a complete fool, only a partial one.

Another point for mascara. Hair, you fail that test. Work on bonding to the strands and get your act together (but I still love you).

So does mascara stand up to working out? Well, I can’t speak for every mascara but Yves Saint Laurent mascara certainly does! Up next? I plan to run in full makeup at the Atlantic City April Fools half. Why? Because I’m running in a costume that calls for it, of course! Not ready to give the costume away quite yet but I bet you’re going to love it. Any guesses?

I received Yves Saint Laurent MASCARA VOLUME EFFET FAUX CILS complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

Getting it Done (Somehow)

March 30, 2015 by Jennifer

Did you all know that Meri is a Cityfit Girls Ambassador, and at the beginning of March, they had an Instagram photo challenge? Well they did! The prompts were great and full of variety so despite the fact that I suck at photo challenges, I joined up. The first prompt was “March Goals”. I grabbed a pen I wrote down a few things I needed to tackle.

By the end of the first week, I’d forgotten that I’d written them down. I know. I’m busy and very easily distracted. So, that green notecard got shuffled into a pile of papers on my desk and I got on with life’s tasks.

It feels like my life revolves around dates and deadlines. There are strict deadlines at work, due dates for homework and looming exam dates, not to mention actually spending time with friends and family. This month was particularly tough because my husband and I were getting our house appraised for a re-fi, so there was THAT whole ring of cleaning and organizing Hades. I was so focused on that whole process and all it entails that I completely forgot about my March goals. On the plus side, we’re done with spring-cleaning!

So when I stumbled upon my green note card on Saturday, I was pleasantly surprised. I got really excited when I realized I could actually CHECK THINGS OFF. OMG.

Like, I ACCOMPLISHED STUFF this month, you guys! This is exciting because I don’t always finish what I start. Here are the goals I forgot I cared about:

Goal 1: Get a good grade on math test. Okay, this one I was totally aware of because I studied my boo-tay off for that exam. I scored an 84% on the test, which pushed my grade up to a firm C. Yeah, I was in desperate need of that 84%. Also, did you know that math sucks?

Goal 2: Keep Training for AC Half. This one suffered a bit as deadlines took over, but I still managed to run a 5k twice a week. I feel guilty about not running more, but I’m trying to forgive myself and look ahead.

Goal 3: Add to Disney Race Jar. My Disney plans changed a bit because since the 2016 GSC takes place on my husband’s 40^th birthday, I will be skipping it. Instead, I saved (a little more) for the AC Half.

Goal 4: Practice Calmness. This is always hard for me, but spring break helped and so did regular runs. Exercise is a balm for the mind and soul!

Goal 5: Tile Kitchen Backsplash. DONE. SO DONE AND SO HAPPY ABOUT IT. The completion of this project means that we are done with our four-month long DIY kitchen update project. I’m confess, I’m quite proud of us, and by ‘us’ I mean me and the Mr. He did the cutting, I did the laying. We decided we should start a tile business working together. *taps chin and daydreams* If there is a home project you’re nervous about tackling, I urge you to research, and then take a deep breath and jump. It’s so rewarding!

Goal 6: Get House Ready for Appraisal. We are purged, clean, organized, and valued higher than we expected!

Bonus Bucket List Goal Accomplished: After thirty-five years, I finally learned how to French braid my hair!

I write this post a satisfied woman. It feels really good to finish things. More than that, it feels awesome to stand back, look at my kitchen, and know that we did that hard work. Sweat equity is the sweetest! It’s also a comfort to know that although I don’t often write my goals down, nor am I always cognizant of them, I seem to accomplish them anyway. It’s quite reassuring.

How do you track your goals and manage expectations? Got any tips for finishing what you start? Please share your wisdom with me, brilliant readers!

How I spent my Spring (non)Break

March 27, 2015 by camoozle

The orange blossoms are blooming. The bees are buzzing. The noses are sneezing. It can only mean one thing, Spring has sprung. Now, here in Socal, spring is no big thing. Really, it’s just like winter, but with more allergies. We do, however, still get to celebrate spring break and let me tell you, I need this break like no other. I’ve wrapped up my second quarter of grad school and my fifth graders are suffering from the hormonal imbalance I (and Thumper) like to call, twitterpation. I very much do not want to see the inside of a classroom for a good long while. Or at least a week. Which is exactly how much Spring Breaking I get to do.

Beside prepping to see my gals in Atlantic City next month, I am going to be spending this week not working out. That’s right, I’m banning myself from the gym. Except for kickboxing. Because shit gets crazy when I have to carry around all that pent-up aggression. Trust me, it’s for the good of everyone that I get to kick and hit things twice a week. But other than that, I’m taking my fitness to the streets, Step Up style. I’ve even compiled a list.

10 Ways I Will Kind of Not Workout This Week (a la Letterman)

10. Bowling – Serious arm workout, son. I plan on using a heavy (well, heavier than the normal 7 pounder I throw) ball and switch arms with every throw. Luckily I care not about my score!

9. Roller Skating – The skating rink in my town is offering a discount in honor of spring break and I plan to take advantage. I’m seriously looking into becoming a Derby girl, I just have to see if I still got the skillz. Couples skate, anyone?

8. Hiking – I want to do a one-nighter, overnight hiking trip this week. In preparation of the Muir trail, of course. And to try out my portable potty.

7. Body Boarding – Yes, I plan to get my booty in that cold Pacific and ride some waves.

6. Moving Furniture – I love rearranging furniture. When my stuffs in one spot for too long, it kind of makes me crazy. I’ll be mixing things up this week.

5. Zoo/Disneyland – San Diego Wild Animal Park and Disneyland are on the docket for kid entertainment. We have passes that are sitting at the bottom of my purse so it’s time to put them to good use. Must resist the Churro cart.

4. Backyard Wrestling – This may or may not include alcohol. I love to wrestle. I know, it’s weird.

3. Trampolining – We’ll be frequenting the local Sky Zone as soon as my kids start bouncing off the walls at home. Trampoline dodgeball is also a possibility.

2. Bike Riding – I don’t even own a bike, but I really want to start family bike riding excursions. I live very close to shops and the fact I get in my car and drive the mile down the street to the grocery store is super sad. Time to get me a dope ride with sick shocks, yo.

1. Rock Climbing – This week I want to go to high places and I want it to be hard to get there. No gym required.

Scootadoot

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