SOCIAL MEDIA


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This week flew by for me. Anyone else? We are having one last cold snap I guess here in the South and it feels like we are back to winter so while I am hibernating tonight I thought I would kot down a few random, totally random, thoughts.

Remember when I said I needed to reevaluate some of the ways in which I currently spend my time here? So yeah, I have been doing a heck of a lot of that and also doing some different things too. New places, new faces and all of that. God, this is great!!! Why did I not ditch some of this crap sooner? I declined summer women's tennis and handed off the baton of captaining my summer mixed team. Whew... what a relief. A couple people were like wait... what are you going to do? Who is going to captain?

i dont care idc GIF by Lifetime Telly


It's March 22 and I have officially dropped a pants size this year. Halle-freaking-lujah.  I have to say I am feeling pret-ty good about myself right now. Momentum is super high and not stopping anytime soon!

jennifer lopez dancing GIF by American Idol


I have decided that this is also a year of yes for me. So instead of waiting for the right time I am just saying yes to a lot more because who knows if the right time will ever come. Sooooo... I put in my application to be a Whole30 Certified Coach. I was thinking maybe I should wait until I have accomplished all my health goals first but then again... nah. This part I got so why not maybe help others and create a little business around it? Hopefully I will be accepted, but I should find out in a few days. Then the process is about 4-8 weeks of testing plus a 30 day mentorship. The kicker is that The New Primal is offering 2 scholarships for the certification fees right now and that was what really sealed the deal for me. I am applying for that too so everyone keep your fingers crossed. This would be so huge and  a chance for me to really do something I am so very passionate about as another aspect of my career!


Kimmy Schmidt Good Luck GIF by Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

My other big news is that I applied for and was accepted to be a host for The Brunch Series Tour with Danika Brysha. This was another one of those "omg should I really do this thing" moments for me and I just said yes, doing it. And well, I'm really doing it. Danika is a curve model with IMG, Model Meals founder, wellness, body positive, selfcare coach in CA. She and her chef/boyfriend are going on the road for 8 months across the country hosting these events that focus on building the life of your dreams and finding authentic happiness. I am beyond excited to be part of this. I am sure I will be sharing more as the date approaches but if you are anywhere near Atlanta and want to come to the event at my house click here

 Photo by  Abbi Cooley  - HMU by  Beauty by Melina




thebrunchseries_webbanner_v1_v.jpg



Happy Thursday! Peace...

Thursday Thoughts & News

Thursday, March 22, 2018


9b40092613401fe4f8788ec9977d2c57.jpg (720×735)


This week flew by for me. Anyone else? We are having one last cold snap I guess here in the South and it feels like we are back to winter so while I am hibernating tonight I thought I would kot down a few random, totally random, thoughts.

Remember when I said I needed to reevaluate some of the ways in which I currently spend my time here? So yeah, I have been doing a heck of a lot of that and also doing some different things too. New places, new faces and all of that. God, this is great!!! Why did I not ditch some of this crap sooner? I declined summer women's tennis and handed off the baton of captaining my summer mixed team. Whew... what a relief. A couple people were like wait... what are you going to do? Who is going to captain?

i dont care idc GIF by Lifetime Telly


It's March 22 and I have officially dropped a pants size this year. Halle-freaking-lujah.  I have to say I am feeling pret-ty good about myself right now. Momentum is super high and not stopping anytime soon!

jennifer lopez dancing GIF by American Idol


I have decided that this is also a year of yes for me. So instead of waiting for the right time I am just saying yes to a lot more because who knows if the right time will ever come. Sooooo... I put in my application to be a Whole30 Certified Coach. I was thinking maybe I should wait until I have accomplished all my health goals first but then again... nah. This part I got so why not maybe help others and create a little business around it? Hopefully I will be accepted, but I should find out in a few days. Then the process is about 4-8 weeks of testing plus a 30 day mentorship. The kicker is that The New Primal is offering 2 scholarships for the certification fees right now and that was what really sealed the deal for me. I am applying for that too so everyone keep your fingers crossed. This would be so huge and  a chance for me to really do something I am so very passionate about as another aspect of my career!


Kimmy Schmidt Good Luck GIF by Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

My other big news is that I applied for and was accepted to be a host for The Brunch Series Tour with Danika Brysha. This was another one of those "omg should I really do this thing" moments for me and I just said yes, doing it. And well, I'm really doing it. Danika is a curve model with IMG, Model Meals founder, wellness, body positive, selfcare coach in CA. She and her chef/boyfriend are going on the road for 8 months across the country hosting these events that focus on building the life of your dreams and finding authentic happiness. I am beyond excited to be part of this. I am sure I will be sharing more as the date approaches but if you are anywhere near Atlanta and want to come to the event at my house click here

 Photo by  Abbi Cooley  - HMU by  Beauty by Melina




thebrunchseries_webbanner_v1_v.jpg



Happy Thursday! Peace...

Keep going and see what happens! Browse our collection of motivational wellness and fitness quotes and get instant training and weight loss inspiration. Stay focused and get fit, healthy and happy!
I am getting to the point in the year when  I usually start slipping a bit with my new year health and fitness goals. I would say in most cases, by about Easter, when the weather is warming up, patios are opening and brunch becomes a weekend requirement that I start preparing to take a flying leap off the proverbial wagon. And also people are asking me "Aren't you done with your Whole30 yet?" which is hella annoying. Umm yes I am, because it's a Whole30 but that doesn't mean I am done done ya know?!!!

The first year I did a Whole30 I actually stayed on the wagon until about May and then I met that one guy and all we did was eat and drink and go out all summer and that was that. So here we are in mid-March and I am about at the 20 lb. weight loss mark. Wooo Hoooo!!! When I say I have been here a bajillion times before I am not exaggerating. But for the sake of this post I wanted to list out some of the good things that seem to start happening to me around the magic 20 lb. mark. I don't know why, it's just magic.

Looser Clothing - All clothing is noticeably looser, to me anyway, unfortunately not to 99.9% of everyone else. This leads to increased time spent in my closet trying on things that don't fit to see how close they actually are to fitting again.  Which leads to planning to stick with it for another however much longer I think it will take for those clothes to fit again. Does anyone else play these mental closet games?  I am still annoyed that no one else can tell I've lost 20 lbs though. Jerks.

Diminished Appetite -  Don't get me wrong, I still get hungry. I definitely think that something about eating garbage food just makes you crave more garbage. To the point where you physically feel hungry when you are not, like all the time. I am sure there are psychological and chemical reasons for this  but all I know is I am less starving. I am consistently more satisfied and able to really discern hunger from craving. #HUGE

Sense of Accomplishment - I think up until I hit 20 lbs. I feel like "I'm not even sure this is working". For some reason in my mind 20 lbs is legitimate weight loss and anything less is not significant. I know, I know that's not right but this is about me so... sorry.

Renewed Commitment -Something about  losing 10 pounds twice makes me feel like hey, I can really do this like multiple times because I actually just did.  Good thing too because as I said before this is where I sometimes want to fall off the wagon.

Exercise Gets Easier - Honestly, this is when I start to notice a difference in my tennis game. Dragging 20 more pounds around on the court is a big deal. I notice that getting to tough shots where I really have to hustle is just a bit easier. Not only can I get there and execute, I feel less winded/tired and able to recover quicker for the next point. Why this always sort of surprises me I still don't know.

The other not so magic-y part about losing 20 lbs. is that here is when I start thinking about all the times I quit and gained it back instead of pushing myself to keep going. In my mind I feel like anyone can lose 20 lbs., it's not that big of a deal but we all know it is. I am just the last person to actually give myself credit for it. I am trying my best to stay off the scale except on the first of the month so I won't really be able to report for sure until then but I am sitting at 18.5 to 19 pounds last weigh in so I am confident that by Easter I will hit and surpass 20. My next goal, just putting it out there, is 30 by June 1 and/or fitting into this one particular pair of white jeans that have been hanging in my closet for 2 seasons.  White jeans.... what was I thinking? They always look so cute on other people and dammit I am going to wear them at least once, comfortably for sure.

Thanks for listening to me ramble:)


Are You Done With Your Whole30 Yet?

Wednesday, March 14, 2018

Keep going and see what happens! Browse our collection of motivational wellness and fitness quotes and get instant training and weight loss inspiration. Stay focused and get fit, healthy and happy!
I am getting to the point in the year when  I usually start slipping a bit with my new year health and fitness goals. I would say in most cases, by about Easter, when the weather is warming up, patios are opening and brunch becomes a weekend requirement that I start preparing to take a flying leap off the proverbial wagon. And also people are asking me "Aren't you done with your Whole30 yet?" which is hella annoying. Umm yes I am, because it's a Whole30 but that doesn't mean I am done done ya know?!!!

The first year I did a Whole30 I actually stayed on the wagon until about May and then I met that one guy and all we did was eat and drink and go out all summer and that was that. So here we are in mid-March and I am about at the 20 lb. weight loss mark. Wooo Hoooo!!! When I say I have been here a bajillion times before I am not exaggerating. But for the sake of this post I wanted to list out some of the good things that seem to start happening to me around the magic 20 lb. mark. I don't know why, it's just magic.

Looser Clothing - All clothing is noticeably looser, to me anyway, unfortunately not to 99.9% of everyone else. This leads to increased time spent in my closet trying on things that don't fit to see how close they actually are to fitting again.  Which leads to planning to stick with it for another however much longer I think it will take for those clothes to fit again. Does anyone else play these mental closet games?  I am still annoyed that no one else can tell I've lost 20 lbs though. Jerks.

Diminished Appetite -  Don't get me wrong, I still get hungry. I definitely think that something about eating garbage food just makes you crave more garbage. To the point where you physically feel hungry when you are not, like all the time. I am sure there are psychological and chemical reasons for this  but all I know is I am less starving. I am consistently more satisfied and able to really discern hunger from craving. #HUGE

Sense of Accomplishment - I think up until I hit 20 lbs. I feel like "I'm not even sure this is working". For some reason in my mind 20 lbs is legitimate weight loss and anything less is not significant. I know, I know that's not right but this is about me so... sorry.

Renewed Commitment -Something about  losing 10 pounds twice makes me feel like hey, I can really do this like multiple times because I actually just did.  Good thing too because as I said before this is where I sometimes want to fall off the wagon.

Exercise Gets Easier - Honestly, this is when I start to notice a difference in my tennis game. Dragging 20 more pounds around on the court is a big deal. I notice that getting to tough shots where I really have to hustle is just a bit easier. Not only can I get there and execute, I feel less winded/tired and able to recover quicker for the next point. Why this always sort of surprises me I still don't know.

The other not so magic-y part about losing 20 lbs. is that here is when I start thinking about all the times I quit and gained it back instead of pushing myself to keep going. In my mind I feel like anyone can lose 20 lbs., it's not that big of a deal but we all know it is. I am just the last person to actually give myself credit for it. I am trying my best to stay off the scale except on the first of the month so I won't really be able to report for sure until then but I am sitting at 18.5 to 19 pounds last weigh in so I am confident that by Easter I will hit and surpass 20. My next goal, just putting it out there, is 30 by June 1 and/or fitting into this one particular pair of white jeans that have been hanging in my closet for 2 seasons.  White jeans.... what was I thinking? They always look so cute on other people and dammit I am going to wear them at least once, comfortably for sure.

Thanks for listening to me ramble:)



Image result for friday

I  don't know about you guys but spring makes me want to buy new things. New clothes especially because you can still get away with covering up a bit before it hit 100 muther fucking degrees in GA. This year I am also a bit obsessed with new things for my house. Things that look lighter, airier, fresh and modern. Here  are 5 things currently on my spring radar.



MY UNIFORM

I live in black pants and simple tops. I am sure I have at least 25 menswear inspired denim, light blue,  French blue and/or  white shirts to go with my 99 pairs of black pants. So why wouldn't I want more? This Marinwood Stripe Poplin Shirt from  Athleta is seriously calling my name. I love the ribbon detail down the back, so different and super chic. These Stellar Crop Pants claim to be the only pants you need for spring. I'll be the judge of that but they do look mighty comfy. One thing I am diligent about is retiring the black pants the minute they start to fade. Nothing looks worse than faded black anything. Don't do it. I totally think these would be Friday friendly for work with some crisp white Adidas or a pair of fun flats.

product photo


product photo


ROTHY'S

Enter Rothy's fun flats. Has anyone bought these yet? They are made of recycled plastic water bottles and are cute, comfy and sustainable. Oh and machine washable... whaaaat? I have not taken the plunge as they do carry a steep price tag for a ballet flat... $125 for round toe, $145 for pointy, but I hate most of the cheap flats I own. They are just not comfy at all and usually if I find a pair that is comfy they look sloppy or slipper-ish. I have my eyeballs on both the leopard because I consider that a neutral and the camo. 

Related image







EAMES CHAIRS

You might think I am nuts but these classic Eames Chairs are currently in my Amazon shopping cart for my kitchen. I want to get rid of the wood/upholstered seat chairs I currently have and freshen up with something light, bright and modern. Ten years ago the thought of keeping these clean would have been daunting with peanut butter and jelly fingers everywhere but now I am pretty sure we can manage.


CHANDELIER

I keep going back and forth with a new light fixture over the kitchen table and I saw this Sputnik Chandelier in a magazine photo and I am kind of thinking it might be the one. Lighting can be so expensive but since I do not plan on this being my home for too many more years I don't want to break the bank. For $112.99 this might be the perfect solution, a pretty upgrade for me that I will have no heartburn over leaving behind.


Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!



Five Things Friday - Fresh Looks For Spring

Friday, March 9, 2018


Image result for friday

I  don't know about you guys but spring makes me want to buy new things. New clothes especially because you can still get away with covering up a bit before it hit 100 muther fucking degrees in GA. This year I am also a bit obsessed with new things for my house. Things that look lighter, airier, fresh and modern. Here  are 5 things currently on my spring radar.



MY UNIFORM

I live in black pants and simple tops. I am sure I have at least 25 menswear inspired denim, light blue,  French blue and/or  white shirts to go with my 99 pairs of black pants. So why wouldn't I want more? This Marinwood Stripe Poplin Shirt from  Athleta is seriously calling my name. I love the ribbon detail down the back, so different and super chic. These Stellar Crop Pants claim to be the only pants you need for spring. I'll be the judge of that but they do look mighty comfy. One thing I am diligent about is retiring the black pants the minute they start to fade. Nothing looks worse than faded black anything. Don't do it. I totally think these would be Friday friendly for work with some crisp white Adidas or a pair of fun flats.

product photo


product photo


ROTHY'S

Enter Rothy's fun flats. Has anyone bought these yet? They are made of recycled plastic water bottles and are cute, comfy and sustainable. Oh and machine washable... whaaaat? I have not taken the plunge as they do carry a steep price tag for a ballet flat... $125 for round toe, $145 for pointy, but I hate most of the cheap flats I own. They are just not comfy at all and usually if I find a pair that is comfy they look sloppy or slipper-ish. I have my eyeballs on both the leopard because I consider that a neutral and the camo. 

Related image







EAMES CHAIRS

You might think I am nuts but these classic Eames Chairs are currently in my Amazon shopping cart for my kitchen. I want to get rid of the wood/upholstered seat chairs I currently have and freshen up with something light, bright and modern. Ten years ago the thought of keeping these clean would have been daunting with peanut butter and jelly fingers everywhere but now I am pretty sure we can manage.


CHANDELIER

I keep going back and forth with a new light fixture over the kitchen table and I saw this Sputnik Chandelier in a magazine photo and I am kind of thinking it might be the one. Lighting can be so expensive but since I do not plan on this being my home for too many more years I don't want to break the bank. For $112.99 this might be the perfect solution, a pretty upgrade for me that I will have no heartburn over leaving behind.


Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!



And Then It's Spring...Hello March
Spring is definitely in the air here in Atlanta. The cherry trees and pear trees are blooming. Daffodils and tulips are everywhere. I am bracing for the impact of all the horrendous yellow pollen that is about to rain down upon us.

Time for a little catch up with Anne and Sarah for what I am up to Currently...

PLANNING - My calendar for the next two months. It's jam packed with lots of fun stuff and lots of work... I hope. Fun stuff this month including the start of spring tennis for 2 teams, mixed and ladies. I said I wasn't going to play two in one season again but ... last time I swear. I'm going out for St. Paddy's Day this year too. I have not done that in I don't know how long but it is a Saturday after all. My local bar is having a dueling pianos show. It's been at least a decade since I've been to one of those. Also there will be $2 green beers, $5 Jameson shots and $6 Irish Car Bombs. Crap.

SEEING - This really tall guy. He's 6'-4". I gotta say, no offense to the shorties out there, but as someone who has always been painfully aware of my own size in terms of feeling too big I am in hog heaven. I actually feel LITTLE when I am with him. It's glorious. He's really sweet too, I like him. Or maybe he's just tall, not sure yet.

MAKING - Brussels Sprouts like they are going out of style. I seriously can't get enough of them. My current favorites are balsamic roasted so they get that sweet crispy caramelized action and Warm Brussel Sprout Bacon Caesar Salad

PRETENDING - That I 100% have this Whole30 life in the bag forever. That I am ready to sign up to be a coach because I am a success story. That I will never go back to my old ways of eating/drinking. That I have my shit together finally... because #fakeittillyoumakeit. It really works.

WEARING - Glasses. I finally went to get my eyes checked and got a prescription for distance and driving at night because apparently I am middle aged and in need. I don't actually have said glasses yet, they are on order but they are really cute and I will share later. Why in the eff didn't someone tell me how many thousands of pairs of cute designer glasses are out there??? Prada and Tiffany had me crying over their price tags. I went Costco. It's fine.


Cheers.

Currently; March

Wednesday, March 7, 2018

And Then It's Spring...Hello March
Spring is definitely in the air here in Atlanta. The cherry trees and pear trees are blooming. Daffodils and tulips are everywhere. I am bracing for the impact of all the horrendous yellow pollen that is about to rain down upon us.

Time for a little catch up with Anne and Sarah for what I am up to Currently...

PLANNING - My calendar for the next two months. It's jam packed with lots of fun stuff and lots of work... I hope. Fun stuff this month including the start of spring tennis for 2 teams, mixed and ladies. I said I wasn't going to play two in one season again but ... last time I swear. I'm going out for St. Paddy's Day this year too. I have not done that in I don't know how long but it is a Saturday after all. My local bar is having a dueling pianos show. It's been at least a decade since I've been to one of those. Also there will be $2 green beers, $5 Jameson shots and $6 Irish Car Bombs. Crap.

SEEING - This really tall guy. He's 6'-4". I gotta say, no offense to the shorties out there, but as someone who has always been painfully aware of my own size in terms of feeling too big I am in hog heaven. I actually feel LITTLE when I am with him. It's glorious. He's really sweet too, I like him. Or maybe he's just tall, not sure yet.

MAKING - Brussels Sprouts like they are going out of style. I seriously can't get enough of them. My current favorites are balsamic roasted so they get that sweet crispy caramelized action and Warm Brussel Sprout Bacon Caesar Salad

PRETENDING - That I 100% have this Whole30 life in the bag forever. That I am ready to sign up to be a coach because I am a success story. That I will never go back to my old ways of eating/drinking. That I have my shit together finally... because #fakeittillyoumakeit. It really works.

WEARING - Glasses. I finally went to get my eyes checked and got a prescription for distance and driving at night because apparently I am middle aged and in need. I don't actually have said glasses yet, they are on order but they are really cute and I will share later. Why in the eff didn't someone tell me how many thousands of pairs of cute designer glasses are out there??? Prada and Tiffany had me crying over their price tags. I went Costco. It's fine.


Cheers.

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