Friday Faves + an Eat Smarter giveaway
Hi friends! Happy Friday! I hope you’ve had a lovely week. What do you have going on this weekend? I’m looking forward to some adventures with the Pilot and also spending Valentine’s Day with the girls.
(From our girls’ night last weekend. We went to the park, got takeout from Bear Canyon pizza, and ate dinner and brownies while watching Zombies 2 and having a glow stick dance party.)
Valentine’s baskets for our little love bugs:
(Many of these items are from Mildred & Dildred! If you’re local and looking for gifts, I’ll often email them, tell them what I’m looking for, and pay in advance so I just have to swoop and pick them up! They also wrap and ship gifts and have the best selection!! The girls each got stuffed plants, stained glass coloring books, a couple of new books, candy, and I picked up nail decals and bathtub paint from Target and these sweet little name bracelets from Etsy.)
Something else I love doing for the girls: leaving love notes on their doors each night while they’re sleeping from Feb 1st until Valentine’s day. I’ll cut out a heart and the Pilot or I will write something we love about them.
Valentine’s Day is always a holiday I enjoy so much and I was trying to figure out why I’ve been dreading it this year… and it hit me. Bell. She was my original Valentine. She was a Valentine’s gift from the Pilot and it’s our first year without that sassy chicken crazy wise little soul by our sides. I miss her with my whole heart and still put my hoodie at the base of our bed each night. (She used to snuggle up in my hoodie before completely burrowing herself next to me or the Pilot during the night.)
Sweet Bellerton.
On a happier note, I received my second copy of Eat Smarter this week. I pre-ordered the book because Shaun Stevenson is my favorite podcast guy and couldn’t wait to receive my copy. The book launched, but mine didn’t arrive in the mail. I was happy to wait it out, but I eventually received an email from his team to let me know that the publishing company wasn’t able to meet demands due to Rona-related delays. They ended up buying their book from retailers that still had them in stock to send to the people who preordered. Yes, they went and bought their own book!
My first copy arrived last week and I’m already 1/3 of the way through. They let me know I’d still get my original copy and told me to share with a friend, so I’d love to share with one of you! Simply leave a comment with something that’s making you smile this week. I’ll pick a random winner Sunday night and get the book shipped out on Monday morning.
Now it’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party! This is where I share some of my favorite finds from the week and around the web. I love to hear about your faves, too, so please shout out something you’re loving in the comments (and also get your giveaway entry)!
Fitness + good eats:
Can we talk about burger salad? I think I like burger salad even more than I like actual burgers. It’s so satisfying and I love all of the flavors and textures. (Originally got the idea from my friend Lexi! I don’t make the dressing but assemble it very similarly. You’ll love it!)
For my variation, I make ground beef in a skillet and season the heck out of it with salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, oregano, and garlic powder. Next, I serve it up with romaine, tomatoes, purple onion, sliced pickles, avocado, and ketchup and mustard on top. SO so good.
It’s also easy to serve for the kiddos because I just put the meat on a brioche bun with cheese and ketchup, pickles on the side, and make them salads to go with it.
C-section recovery tips and exercises.
Childhood diet has lifelong impact.
Went on another walk-run this week (just 3 miles) and it felt AMAZING. I even woke up early (early = 7:15 lol) to do it. I realized how much I’d missed running as a small part of my weekly routine – my last Orangetheory class was a year ago – so I decided to start doing walk runs to get back in the hang of it.
Read, watch, listen:
A new evening reading activity.
Check out my latest podcast episode with Erin from Bad Yogi.
So excited to be featured in this Blue Apron blog post. Also, you can use my link for $80 off your first four boxes!
My latest post for WebMD is here.
Just for lolz:
Fashion + beauty:
This camo dress! It’s felt positively springlike this past week and I’m living it up! (Sorry to all of the friends out there covered in a layer of snow.) I also wear this dress a lot; it’s so comfortable and looks really cute with low-top sneakers and a denim jacket.
Happy Friday, friends!
xo
Gina
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It has been a LONG week…we went back to in-person school after 9 on-line days because of Covid…we got our first official SNOW day today!! On a Friday…that truly puts a smile on my face because my daughter’s school is still virtual and she too gets the day off! Winning!
I love The model health show podcast! So excited his book is out! Something making me smile is that I found a great new local coffee shop this week! It’s right in my way to work- I love coffee and love supporting small businesses!
Hanging out with friends this week while visiting Colorado
My cat makes me smile. Thanks for the giveaway!
My dog, Jemma, always makes me smile!
Music has really been uplifting me right now.
My new beagle puppy is making me smile even though she is a little monster!
I spent a lot of time outside in the snow on Sunday with my boyfriend. We had a snowball fight and made a snowman!
A few things are making me smile this week, my grandmother is feeling better and my sweet baby nephew.
I’m smiling for winter break next week. I’m a teacher and we have a whole week off! Already planned my week’s activities: snuggle my dog, read, workout, take baths, date nights in w husband, drink wine, and absolutely NO virtual lesson planning! 🙂
Such great customer service from the eat smarter people! I follow a Facebook page called great heroes and they post inspiring stories of the wonderful things people do for each other. It always makes me smile and sometimes cry.
I listen to The Model Health Show podcast on my runs. Speaking of runs… I had such a good run this morning. I smile everyday because running brings me so much joy. It’s my therapy!
So happy to see the number of covid patients going down at the hospital where I work with and feeling like I have really helped them in the recovery process.
Love the idea of hearts on your girls’ door! Xo
I saw my first daffodil of the season! Spring has no way arrived, but somehow through freezing rain this flower opened! take care.
MY Friday favorite is waking up before my husband and kids and getting in a good solid hour of alone time reading and drinking coffee on the couch before everyone gets up,.
I am also in Tucson and have that camo dress. My favorite!
I love the Model Health Show! Something that made me smile–warm sunny weather!
A little dusting of snow this week is making me smile!
I’m smiling because I am STILL going strong with Fit Team – yay! I realized yesterday why I love it so much (well, there are lots of reasons, but this is the main one), and it’s that I can slow down and go at my own pace, so I can make sure my form is correct. Videos always go too fast for me, and I wobble and stumble and only half do the moves because I’m just trying to keep up! I’m loving the workouts and starting to feel the difference in my body, mood, and energy. Thank you, Gina!
I’ve been watching the charmed remake while watching the original. It is fun to watch one of my favorites again while watching how they’ve revamped it!
I love your hearts on the bedroom door idea! I’ll definitely be stealing that for future Valentine Days!
I’m pregnant, and everything my little big-sister-to-be says puts a smile on my face. Just yesterday she told me she wishes she could be in my belly, too to be with the baby.
The sunshine!!
Watching my husband snow blow the driveway with a big smile on his face because he loves it so much made ME smile this week.
My two little Boston terriers all snuggled up on the couch, plus my three little girls, are all making me smile this chilly February! Love your Friday posts too. They are my favorite!
The long weekend ahead is making me smile. I did the hearts on the door for my daughter last year and they are still up because she refused to let me take them down. 🙂
Lots of smiling around here, even when the temps are below zero! Starting homeschooling next week, main floor renovation- flooring, furniture, doors, blinds!- and a trip to warm, sunny Florida in a week!
More like a laugh but my son getting a taste of my milkshake then grabbing in a protective hug and sternly saying mine. He’s 20 months old haha
My smile is from the way my 3 year old daughter has taken to her newborn brother – always wanting to sing him a lullaby and tuck him in or when she runs to him whenever he cries.
I’m smiling because I have a zoom call tomorrow for my beautiful niece’s 10th birthday. <3
We had a virtual Chinese New Year and Mardi Gras celebration with my small team at work today (specifically celebrating the heritage of 2 of our colleagues) and it was LIFE GIVING!! I’m pretty sure I had a smile plastered on my face the entire time.
Also, oh sweet Bella. I really feel you on this…and we put Bali’s blanket at the foot of the bed where she would snuggle every night for MONTHS after she passed. Sending you much love!
Something that’s making me smile this week is helping my friend move. It was a looooot of hard work, and I still had to go into work that evening, but I’m so glad that I was able to help him and his wife move into their new apartment!
I love the hearts on the door! My hubby has COVID so our Valentine’s day will be spent isolated away from each other in the house as I’m still waiting to find out if I have it. We’ll see. I’m just glad his symptoms not too terrible.
Smiling because my preschool classroom didn’t totally flood when the sprinkler system pipes broke (-38 degrees)…we were able to get everything mostly dry and only miss one day of school. Preschool had been out for 3 months due to COVID so I was happy we didn’t have to miss even more days!
The BIGGEST thing making me smile this week….the kids’ school voting to return to full 5 day/week IN PERSON learning March 22nd. Literally a full YEAR after being at home or some type of 2-day hybrid situation. AHHHHHHHH, cannot wait!!!
My 10.5 month old daughter Madison always makes me smile! Seeing the light in her eyes as she learns new things every day is so magical!
My 1.5 year old girl is starting to do the cutest dance moves and it definitely makes me smile these days.
Listening to Disney podcasts and pretending I’m there is making me smile. Random, but a nice quarantine coping mechanism lol
What made me smile? During my final Teacher
Observation, a students cat sat on the camera for about 3 minutes. Instead of the perky smiling kid face…we saw cat butt for 3 minutes. Hilarious! Totally eased the tension of the observation and the unmuted kid trying to get the cat to move (who refused) made everyone laugh.
My daughter fixing me hot chocolate and getting me a blanket when I was feeling under the weather would have made me smile anyway, but what really got me was how happy and proud she clearly was to be turning the tables like that 🙂
Happy V day!
My son and I are flying to NC on Sunday to visit my mom for the first time in many months. There will definitely be a smile on my face when we land!
My granddaughter visiting every weekend always makes me smile. This weekend though, I have more smiles because my exercise bike was delivered today and will be assembled tomorrow afternoon. Looking forward to the first ride !
I’m sorry I accidentally replied on someone’s message.
Music has been uplifting for me.
My daughter being excited for meeting her new little sister in 39 days! She’s been waiting for a sister for 8 years!
I’m smiling because I got my second vaccine on Tuesday!!!!
Lots of smiles as we celebrate my sis in law’s baby shower. It’s taken 9 years for her miracle
That book looks great! My twins’ 5th birthday this week made me smile – a wonderful milestone and excuse to celebrate!
I wad the first grad student in my seminar class to give a 30-minute presentation yesterday, and it went so well! Very glad to have it out of the way :).
I love snowy days with my 9 year old daughter. Just hanging inside and cuddling,
I’m sorry this will be the first Valentine’s Day without Bella around to snuggle! She is so well loved that it makes sense she was a Valentine’s gift ❤️
All the snow where I am has been making me smile. I love going for below-freezing walks. I know it isn’t everyone’s favorite, but I love it!
My niece turned 1 month old and I’m dying from all of the pics and videos I get daily! That’s definitely making me smile lately. Hoping to meet her in person in a few months (as well as a nephew I have on the way! Yes, I have two sisters and they both got pregnant while stuck at home haha). Honestly just thankful for technology allowing us to connect since I haven’t seen my family in person since the end of 2019 🙁
This week I’m smiling about my 3 year old and how she is always SO happy. She wakes up laughing and I sometimes wonder if her cheeks hurt from smiling so much.