The Key to Win Your Morning Workout --Nail Your Evening Routine!!

 

Who wants to wake up and rock the morning?! Everyone right?! We busy moms know that our precious littles are the center of our attention when they're awake!! If we want to get in some sweat therapy, we've got to beat the kids out of the bed!!  I have one key to knocking it out of the park when you wake up in the morning...your evening routine!

But even though I am a morning person with fitness goals, I don't just spring out of bed when the alarm goes off. I have to prep myself and say to myself "Time to Go, Polly!! You've got business to do!" And it is so helpful to know that while I am laying in the bed, I already have all my stuff ready to go as soon as my feet hit the floor.

So let me share with you what I do for my evening routine to rock my morning workout...

1) Lay out your workout clothes. I put them beside the bed where I roll out so I step on them when I rise.

2) Put a glass of water beside your bed. When I wake up I am so thirsty so I am ready for that cool glass of water. Plus, it really brings my body back to life.

3) Have your workout stuff set up. So for my workouts I use a variety of materials: yoga mat, computer (to play my workout on), weights, bands, etc. It's already set up in its' location. Everything's ready, my workout is waiting for me!

ALL I HAVE TO DO IS PRESS PLAY!!!!

I hope you can benefit from this evening routine! If you have other suggestions, comment below!

I'd love to know how you rock your morning!

Healthy Vacationing!

Healthy, Happy Vacationing!! 

Hello all! I'm so glad that you are interested in healthy vacationing because living healthfully isn't just something you do when you want to lose weight or build muscle; it's a lifestyle! And when you're living life to the fullest, you're going to travel and go on a vacation with your spouse, loved ones, family, or all of the above!! I believe it's important to maintain a healthy lifestyle no matter what you're doing or where you are! Plus, if we're used to eating healthfully and then eat poorly for a few days (vacationing or otherwise), we tend to feel downright crabby! All the way from my mood to my motivation! No one wants a lack motivation on their vacation! Can I get an Amen!?!?

So here's some tips that can help you stay on track while out of town!

Preparing to Leave...

1) Pack snacks for the trip! This is something that we do almost daily when we leave the house! Having snacks like applesauce, fruit, veggies, protein bars (I almost bought the kids Clif energy bars the other day! Ahhh!!), and other tasty and healthy snacks for you and your travelers is a sure way to stay on track. Bonus- if you buy healthy snacks from the grocery store before the trip, you'll save a lot of money from not purchasing snacks from the gas stations. Healthier plus Cheaper! Now that's a happy camper!

2) If possible, stay somewhere that has a fitness room! How luxurious is that!? Not only are you going to workout, you're going to workout out in a fitness room! Stair-stepper? I think yes! Treadmill? Absolutely! Weight training with pro weights/machines? You're talking my love language! While the littles and hubby sleep, plan to sneak downstairs and jam out to a rocking workout!

While on Vacation...

3) Wake early before the others! Once my littles are awake, it's time for snuggles and that I don't want to miss out on! They take over my attention and there goes my workout time. So even though you're on vacay, take some time for yourself to bust out a sweat! Your attitude will soar!!

4) Plan an active adventure! A couple of things to keep in mind here are where you are and the level of difficulty. If you're staying somewhere hot, plan to do a water sport such as paddle boarding. Staying somewhere cooler? Trying a game of paintball. Also, it's key to keep in mind the other travelers. If you're going with a bunch of your guyfriends, maybe a difficult hike up a steep mountain is your jam. But if it's a family-oriented gathering, something like a nature walk to a picnic/playground set up maybe more your speed. If you take these two things into consideration, everyone will end up have a spectacular time!

5) Prepare yourself for restaurants! We all know that eating healthfully in a restaurant can be hard but try to keep in mind some basics. Lean meat (steamed or broiled chicken, fish, shrimp, turkey) and veggies (the more colorful the better) are always good choices. Stay away from fried foods and sugary drinks and drink plenty of water throughout the day.

I hope these tips helped prepare you for a healthy and happy vacation! If you have some other tips to share, drop a comment below! I'd love to hear what you have to say!

The Medicine Cabinet Makeover

Hello friends!

This little mini makeover was all because of my dear FIL who had a terrible case of the heartburn! Bless his heart! I don't have those kinds of troubles but my Shug does and I knew he had some relief in the shape of a pill somewhere but where!? I took off to all the different locations that meds were stashed: kitchen cabinet, bathroom, the other bathroom, nightstand drawer. Finally, I went to his pickup and there found some in the door just in time for dear ole' dad! :)

Whew! What trouble that was!! And all that searching was all it took.
The Medicine Cabinet Makeover began!!
But can I call it a cabinet makeover if I don't actually have a medicine cabinet?! I digress...

Today I'm here to talk about the medicine cabinet/storage.
 If you have one, congrats! Stay tuned and we'll get cracking but first...

When you don't have one you have to be a little creative deciding where you'll stash those medications. Now, before we had kids we just stuck them in the bottom of the bathroom cabinet. But as those of you that have littles know, that's just not acceptable. So we get more creative and just a little smart.
So I asked myself, what is the highest place that I can reach that they can't? Well, for my house it works out to be a small space inside my kitchen cabinet. That might seem strange to some but it's pretty natural feeling now.

So now, my dear friend, let me show you what I did super quick and easy that you can do too AND you won't be digging through a number of cabinets before you find what you need!! :)

Let's get started!
#1- Find all your medical paraphernalia (where ever it may be or got left) and dump it out!
Just dump it right out on your counter, floor, kitchen table, etc. Just be mindful if you have littles to keep it out of their reach.

#2-Throw away! There's three criteria here that I used.
Trash- This is the easiest and surprisingly enough, what I had the most off. Empty medicine boxes, bandaid trash, empty packets. All of those are super easy to say goodbye to and they leave your spot looking much better right from the start.

Damaged Items: For instance, bandaids that got some cough medicine on them. They probably won't stick well and let's just be honest-- they don't look good anymore! Chunk 'em!

Unused Items: For instance, infant tylenol or diaper rash cream. Hmm...since I have 6 year olds, I think I'll give them to my friend who still has an infant! :) Brilliant!!

            

Expired meds: Here's where I had some reservations since I'm a pack rat at heart. I found medications that had expired but were unopened. I really wanted to save them but they were out of date by 6 months or so. And really if I had kept them that long without opening them, will I need them again? Meh. Probably not. So toss 'em!
                                                                
#3- Sort!
Now that all the surplus has been removed, let's sort what you have! These are the categories I used but, please, customize this to fit your needs.

Baby
Kids
First Aid
Tummy/Heartburn
Headache
Supplements
Prescriptions
Cold/Cough
Misc.






#4- What's missing?
This was the perfect time to take a mental inventory of what I have and don't have.
A few things to consider:
Past Experiences: This is a good time to think back to those late night runs to the convenient store or that time you had to wake up your sick kids after leaving the emergency room to go inside and purchase {fill in the blank}. Also, I'm super guilty of not having sprite and saltines on hand. My kids throw up in a heartbeat and I've found from personal experience, that having those two things on hand make life so much easier!
Seasonality: My husband and kids suffer from allergies so if it's allergy season right now...might want to pick up an extra bottle. Or say it's cold/flu season, this might be the day to scoop up some extra cough meds or throat lozenges.
Currently: I obviously needed heartburn meds!!! Also, I noticed the peroxide was close to empty, could use more large bandaids, and the only headache medicine we had was acetaminophen and we normally use aleve.  So I wrote those things on my shopping list and continued to step 5!

#5- Organize!
Now, there are a couple of things to consider here before throwing it all back where you found it and calling it a day: location and container.
For me, I used a Dollar Tree rectangular box in my kitchen for the cold/cough, headache, and supplements. This makes the most sense for my folks. Then in the bathroom on a tall shelf, I have another decorative container full of scripts, heartburn/tummy meds, and misc items (think bulb syringe, eye drops). Finally, I have a decorative basket in the bottom of the bathroom cabinet that holds first aid items. The kids are old enough to get their own bandaid if needed and they feel independent in doing so. 
So consider those two factors for your medicines. It might make sense to keep yours altogether!
Whatever works for you and your family is what matters most! But most importantly--whatever you decide, put it into action!! I mean it...go put your meds away now! :) Even if you need something to make your plan happen, like a box or bag, just toss it in something for now. I know you've got a bowl around the house that you can use for a short time or an Amazon box where you just got something shipped in yesterday...or is that only me?

#6- Purchase!
 Just add the containers to your list and scoop them up (along with the missing items you wrote down from step #4 next time you're out shopping!

#7- Put the Away!
Now that you have missing meds and possibly different containers, go put them away! Next time you're needing something like TUMS you'll know exactly where to find them! :)

BONUS: Vehicles
If you really want a gold feather in your cap, think about items you often need while your traveling (and I mean anytime you're away from home!). Things I like to keep on hand are headache meds, and heartburn for Shug, and a homemade or purchased first aid kit. Just a quick tip, I don't travel with liquid meds. If I need those while traveling, I just stop and pick them up. No risk in spilling!

With a little effort and a little planning, I have found that I am better able to keep my family happy when I am prepared for many minor medical issues. This can keep your stress levels and whoever needs your care down to a minimum when a crisis strikes. Preparing allows you to focus all your attention on healing and comforting. A much better situation that a panic and rushing to the store while littles are bleeding or vomitting!

So now that your medicine cabinet/storage is stocked and madeover...bring on the accidents!
Oh wait...NO!! Don't bring on the accidents!!!

But...if they arise my friend, you'll be ready! 

I hope this was helpful to you and your family! Drop me a line if you can add helpful advice!
I'd sure love to hear it!

All the best!
Polly

A Tale of a Multi-Colored Brick Home than Is No Longer Multi-Colored

Once upon a time, two young people in love were looking for a home in a lovely small town area. They had certain criteria it had to meet and there weren't many homes that fit those specs. They would stumble across one and then another then they intensely started searching for "the one."
One of these home that fit the criteria was immediately crossed off the list due to its' brick appearance. It was the oddest looking multicolored brick you have ever seen! Immediately, it was crossed off the list and the search continued. Well - the search took quite some time. As things like that go when you are trying to find the most perfect one of a kind home. And one year later, that very same home came back into the market but this time 60,000 less than before. While the wreched brick was still unappealing, the price was. So the young couple fell in love with the acreage and the home with all is spaciousness and after some negotiations, purchased the home.

That young in love couple was us. Me and Shug. And these are our adventures in how we've made our home more "our home." We are still that much in love and more! In fact, we have so much love for one another it spilled over into our darling 6 year old twin boys, the X men. I enjoy decorating and re-decorating, home diys, short cuts, organizing, simplicity, and most of all my faith and family!
Take a look at what we're doing and maybe you can find a short cut or two, too!! :)

The very first thing we said we were going to do to our home was paint it! Until...(right!? that's what they all say!) we realized a lot more needed to be done on the inside! Painting, trim, removing baseboard heating, etc. When you move into a new house, the list goes on and on, amiright!?
So we did all the things that made everyday living more accessible and pretty. But those bricks we on the to do list!

Fast forward to 10 years later...  That's right I said 10 years. Not months. YEARS! Haha! It's amazing what you can put off. But finally Shug and I said, "Let's do it! Let's finally paint the house!" Yaaaayyyyyyyy!! All the happy emojis! Out of all of the renos we've done to this house, this is the only one that will make our ROI worth while!

Take a look!

Even when the painter and his wife were on the way to take a look at our home, she said, "Why in the world would they want to paint a brick home?!" Well...then she pulled up and said, "Oh, I get it now."

I had already painted the fireplace (a couple of times) so I knew how the texture would turn out {FABULOUS} but I wasn't sure if it would look great in such a large quantity, ya know?!

But I am sure that you can agree that it looks like a brand new place!

Key words: multi-colored brick, multicolored brick, home exterior, painting, paint, shutters, home, 
design, decorating, color, navy, charcoal, white trim, roller, rolling brick,