Back to my Roots for Memorial Day Weekend!

Over the Memorial holiday, it was a 4-day weekend for me. I spent half of it back in my hometown with my family and half of it recovering and taking it easy at home. I was so damn tired. I love going 100 MPH because I am as high strung as one could possibly be, but I needed a recharge! 

Friday, I worked until 4 then hit the gym for a hard leg workout. I had to start it right! After the gym, I went by Target and GNC so I could knock some of my errands out, then went home to make dinner, clean up, and pack my suitcase.

Saturday, I drove back to my hometown. I stayed with my brother, and had a cookout with my family and best friend Jennifer. It was part a cookout for Memorial Day and part a cookout for my sister-in-law Amber. Her 21st birthday was Sunday! The weather was wonderful, we played cornhole, laughed, and made memories. There is nothing better than a down home, country cookout!

Sunday I drove to the next town over to visit my dad. I know I have not written about him in a while, but he is doing OK. He is doing the best he can with his cancer. He is out of work on medical leave and once that is up, he will have to retire-- but he keeps fighting. I admire that. I taught him the art of selifes while I was there, ha! We then had lunch with my step-mom. She made healthy turkey salad's. It was delicious as always and I love her, she is so supportive of my weight loss journey, and it means a lot to me!

Once I left my dads house, I went back to my brothers to get ready for a Harley Davidson event in Greensboro. They were hosting a bike show and Brantley Gilbert concert! Once again the weather was great and my sister-in-law, brother, and I had great time. Oh and while I was there I was recognized from my blog! That's the second time this year, very cool!

After the concert, I really wanted to go home. I was ready to be back in Charlotte thus I had the bright idea to drive back. I wanted to get the drive over with so I could enjoy two full days at home. It was a STUPID idea. I got home around 2 AM and did not go to sleep until after 3. On Monday I ended up sleeping until after noon, which I never do. I was exhausted, still sore from my leg workout, I was nonstop for a few days with a lot of driving, and it all hit me at once. I spent the day being very, very lazy. I did push myself to get groceries at Earthfare, create a new recipe, and food prep.

Tuesday was similar to Monday. More rest and doing things about the apartment. I thoroughly enjoyed my two days of taking it easy, but it was hard to get back on routine. However, sometimes we just need a break!

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A Super Late Crazy, 3-day, Weekend Recap

Better late than never, I suppose! All I can say after this weekend is... wow. It was perhaps the best and worst weekend I have had in a long time. The family drama I witnessed and that ensued makes Jerry Springer look classy. My weekend with my mom was interrupted, of course, because that is how my life goes, but we made it work. Friday night after work, we went to our favorite restaurant "The Melting Pot" for dinner. We indulged in cheese dip and white chocolate brulee for dessert! It was so much fun. We only go a few times a year so it's always great to go. After dinner I met a new friend at a local pub for a nightcap.

Saturday morning we left Charlotte early to spend the day moving my mom into my brother's house. It was a long, long morning and afternoon. Hiking and weight lifting are great workouts but I think moving has to beat them all. Nothing exhausts me more. Once mom was moved in, we decided to stay the night with my brother, sister in law, and nephew instead of driving back to Charlotte.

Later that evening as I was getting ready, my nephew was watching me do my makeup and was so fascinated. It was seriously the cutest thing. He loved looking at himself in the mirror. As I was putting on my foundation and stroking the brush on my face, he was doing the same thing with a Q-tip. Seriously, no one can melt me like he can.

The above pictures are me with my sister-in-law and baby brother. I cannot believe my Bub will be 22 in less than two months... I mean that is just crazy to me. To my pleasant surprise, Saturday night turned out to be a really fun and good night.

Sunday morning my mom and I took off back to Charlotte. She and I both were exhausted. I haven't felt that kind of exhaustion in a long time. Plus not sleeping well on Saturday did not help either. She and I spent the day at my apartment taking it easy. I cleaned and got some food prep done. We then took showers and made ourselves look presentable.

We went to a really fun Mexican bar in Matthews for dinner and drinks. The drinks were awesome. Mine was so big though! I could not even make it through half, but it was delicious. I hate Margarita's, but the "top shelf" one I had was not bad. Mama had fresh Sangria, her favorite. It was strong - actually stronger than mine!

Monday, mom left early. I woke up aching. The soreness from the move officially kicked in. Nonetheless, I had a lot to do. I spent the morning running errands, spent 3 hours putting a desk together, and then more hours scrubbing my apartment and food prepping. Nonstop I tell ya! However, I can't wait to tell you guys all about my new little "home office space" I created and why! More on that next week.

Now it's time to tackle this work day, have a killer workout, and enjoy a 4-day weekend with my family! Have a great Memorial Day weekend everyone - what do you guys have planned?

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A Lovely Easter Weekend Recap

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Easter weekend, or what is left of it. I know I did! Unfortunately I did not have Friday off like most of my friends did, but I did get to leave work early! I went to my doctor to get my B12 injection and my weight loss this week was 2 pounds. I am thankful for that! Last week my fat mass was down 3 pounds but the scale was up half a pound. I know that is good, but it still irritates me. 

After my doctor's appointment I went to the gym. Holy crap it was one of the best workouts I have had in a long time. I always schedule my leg workouts the day before my rest day. Legs are my favorite to work and I made sure I pushed to the limits. I am still very sore today from it. 

Once I finished I at the gym, I came home to get ready. I went to dinner with one of good friends, Crystal. Since I had a cheat meal earlier this week, I had my last week meal for the week with her. Go big or go home, ha! We went to one of my favorite restaurants, "City Tavern". I had my favorite dinner, their prime rib wheat wrap and we also had dessert, "Banana Foster". We were miserable after eating, ha! After dinner we we went to the movies. We saw the movie "Oculus". I am a horror junkie plus this movie got really good reviews. However I was not a fan. I hated the ending and the story line was hard to follow.

Saturday morning I woke up at 11 AM. I normally never sleep that late but that is what happens when I have those brutal leg workouts. As expected, I couldn't walk, ha. I got ready then took off to Greensboro to spend the night with my mom and grandma. When I got there we went to a wine store to a wine tasting then did some shopping. I found the cutest bag at Target, I love my new purse!

Once we got home, we went outside to enjoy my grandmothers new outdoor room. It is absolutely beautiful and it was the perfect night for it, too. The weather had been awful - very rainy and cold.

My two rocks in this world; my amazing mama and my amazing grandmother.

Also when we got home from shopping, my grandmother showed me her new purse. Can someone please help me figure out who this bag is by so I can purchase one? The bag does not have a label on it so I don't know if anyone will recognize the symbol. I begged my grandmother until I was blue in the face for this bag and she will not let me have it, ha. It matches with her Easter outfit too well. She bought it at a boutique at the beach and has no idea who the bag is by. All I know is, I died when I saw this purse. I want it!

I had a lot of fun, we had a girls night with lots of talking, laughs, and spending time together. Those are my favorite kind of nights - I am so close to my mom and grandmother. Perhaps too close. This morning my grandmother looked absolutely stunning in her new outfit for her Sunday best. Seriously, how gorgeous is she?

She was also excited because her dress makes her have a little booty. She wanted me to take a picture of it, too. She is SO taking after her granddaughter (hehe) and I absolutely love it. If you guys think I am crazy, you should meet the two generations of women above me! They are where I get it from!

I arrived back to Charlotte around 12:30 from Greensboro. I initially planned on driving from Greensboro straight to the mountains to hike, but I bailed on the idea. I did not sleep well last night, my legs are still really sore from Friday, and I forgot a sports bra. The idea of driving 2 1/2 hours to the mountains and being all stiff and sore when I got there, did not sound too great. Plus it rained all freaking weekend. 

I regretted my decision after being home for about 30 minutes. So I thought I would just go to the gym instead. Wrong! My gym was closed. Then I thought about just taking the day off from working out. That did not last long though - I have goals to attain and I am not going to get there by skipping planned workouts. Thus, I improvised. I did a 30 minute full body plyometric workout in my living room then jogged the greenway behind my apartment for 50 minutes. It was an awesome workout. I am so happy I pushed myself to do it, even when I wasn't really feeling it! 

Another great thing how much stamina I now have with running. I am down nearly 47 pounds since 11/25/13 and it is incredible how different I feel. Distance running previously hurt. I had too much weight, and short/big legs. Now that I have lost so much and built so much muscle, I can just run and run and run and run and not stop. That is truly incredible to me. It has been a long time since I have felt this way.

Now I am off to food prep for the week and clean my apartment! The list never ends!

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