"When are you due?"

That is a question you should never ask another woman.

Especially one who is at the gym, changing in the locker room.  I calmly just said my 6 month old was in Kids Klub.

And then it happened again a couple months later... same place, new person... a skinny 20 something.

But they say the third time's a charm...

This 3rd time didn't feel so charming..."OOOhh, wow, saw you playing racquetball hard and lifting... when are you expecting?!?"  And I wasn't as calm.  I said, "You should just ask people if they have children, not when they are due in case they are not pregnant... My two boys are in Kids Klub and no one else is growing in this body."

Though right now I have chosen getting better and forgiveness and I am thankful for those three bold, no filter women.  Without them, I would still be on this journey alone.  And I did ok on my journey alone.. in 10 months at gym workouts and my nutrition I lost 12 lbs and was getting stronger.

 But don't do this alone friends and you don't need a gym!   In the first two months with online communities and Beachbody I lost 12 lbs, 10 more inches, and am at down to 13.5% body fat.

 I am so grateful my friend Molly shared her story consistently about the impact the Beachbody community and Shakeology were making in her life.  And now, I can't help but share mine in case you have that "third time's a charm" moment and want the community, consistency, change I didn't realize I was craving.   I have realized my body and diastasis recti (my pregnancy's splitting my abs) really needed daily expert workouts to begin healing.  I have learned to intentionally plan my me time, my schedule, my nutrition.  I am continuing to learn daily what I'm willing to sacrifice, what I'm not, where my excuses come from and how strong I can be (and not just in muscles!).

  It has become so much more about the inches and scale and about helping others now. I have been on a health journey since Declan was born but now I want to stay on one forever for the energy it gives me, the modeling it does for my children and for putting myself first in the morning to serve and be patient the rest of the day.

Contact me and look around here if you are interested in hearing more about programs I have done, both with Shakeology, and I would love to tell you about them.

 I am looking for three more friends who want to get on their own journey with us in a SUMMER AIN'T OVER TIL WE SLAY IT IS community today...   There may be better times than others to start, but life will always be busy and will never slow down unless we make the time.  But this upcoming August group is going to be saving you so much time in the kitchen to enjoying the remaining long sunlight outdoors... So take a chance with me, fill out this form, and we'll start practicing habits, learning to sacrifice to gain, but giving yourself grace and starting over sometimes daily for awhile because I still do!

  Take care of you first to be the best YOU, the best friend, spouse, or parent you can be!

Shaking up my lunch!

Or blending it sometimes too!

My new career has no guarenteed breaks... Somedays I get a "break" for 1.5 hours (aka cleaning and prepping) sometimes none, sometimes a perfect 30 minutes and I'm a ready and recharged provider... especially with my afternoon "Chocolate Malt" or "Iced Coffee" fix!

A lunch where I can sit for 30 minutes and eat slow is not in my job description. And I wouldn't want it any other way.  But I needed to start taking care of eating better as I was either HANGRY or would stuff my face fast and overeat and feel it in 10 minutes.  I had never been a believer in drinking meals but instead thought we only needed to eat real whole foods.

I had committed to doing Shakeology for 2 months during my PiYo program.  Now I can't imagine not doing it.  It is my favorite meal of the day and I have felt all the benefits of it. I have now spent over 3 hours online researching different cheaper plant protein based shakes and have taste tested 3 of them, but Shakeology has been my favorite and the ingredient list is just better!

But as my coach and friend said, you have to enjoy it yourself and believe in it to want to share about it.  And I wish I had just saved my time and trusted her, but she is right... you have to try it and believe it yourself.

There is more info you can watch this and start your own research.  Or just try the 30 day money back guarantee.  If you know me, I'm "cheap", a couponer, etc and I totally intended to get my $ back if I didn't like it or feel like it helped my health.  But I believe it was 50% of the gamechanger in the last 12 lbs I lost.  (The other 50% for me was accountability & community with my daily morning workouts and watching portion sizes of my carbs especially!)   If you want to look into Challenge Packs, the best deal and way to try Shakeology and still get an awesome workout program, look around here and contact me!  I am looking for a few family and friends for my New Year, New Habits, New You challenge group!!

  And yes it can seem expensive, I will blog more about that later, but the short and blunt version is it is all in where our priorities lay and what you are willing to sacrifice.  We intentionally eat out less each month and with planning meals and not commuting I don't stop for the fast food, coffees etc so we made a little wiggle room in our budget.  And personally, I would rather pay to be healthy now than pay to fix my health later!   Or seriously, ask your spouse, mom, dad, whomever for a Challenge Pack for a Christmas present... Who needs more things to take care of?  Experiences all the way!

Best place for a friend reunion when you have small children...

Not their house, not my house, definitely not resturants...

Outdoors is good if you know weather will be good...

But hands down... A Children's Museum!  It is safe, kids are so excited and entertained for more than 15 minutes, and we could enjoy our hot coffees while watching play at its finest!  Love we have a reciprocal membership from St. Paul Children's Musuem so we can get in so many others at a great discount.

Today we drove to Eau Claire, WI so I could meet my old Hutch friend and HLWW carpool collegue Mary!  We hadn't seen each other in person since Declan made a quick big mess as a little 6 week old baby at their home!  Andy and I will always have our traveling regret of not visiting them while they lived in Thailand, but they are back so future brewery and winery tours will have to do!

 We finished the perfect fall morning off with a beautiful walk to a farmer's market with lunch on by the river climbing boulders on the hill!

Looking forward to Hutchinson's Children's Museum next!