{TGIF Peeps}

Check out some of the links that I've been lovin' on this week:

- Doesn't this look sh-mazing? I love sloppy joes and grilled cheese - putting them together is just pure genius.

- I purchased this for my living room and I LOVE it (hint hint) you should get one too...

- I'm adding this bag to my Christmas list...

- Loving the coats over at EmersonMade...

- Oh It's Fall Alright - love the vintage fur...

- Isn't this room divine? That lamp!

- Need some work outfit ideas? Click here

Enjoy your weekend Peeps!!

{mmm...mmmm...good}

Don't these look delicious? I need to figure out the points value for one of these - but I'm thinking it can't be too bad. Lately I've been exploring in the kitchen, making new recipes, and trying to actually enjoy cooking - so these will be going on my list of tries:


For the full recipe click here.

{Vicky's Secret is great - but...}

Oooooo - aren't these pretty? I saw these over at Design Love Fest yesterday and immediately was drawn to how girly and frilly this lingerie is. I have to be honest, my go to night-time outfit usually consists of an old high school cheerleading t-shirt (yes I was a cheerleader...and a gymnast) and a pair of basketball shorts, but these really make me feel like maybe I should step up my game!

If you too need to step up your game, click here, to browse the Journelle lingerie shop!

{Just Go With The Faux}

Fur and leather have always been a luxe option but also a very controversial one. Lucky for us, designers are now opting to include the use of FAUX fur and leather in their collections. I'm loving all the options that are available this fall and below are a few of my faves (*note - the coat below will be purchased as a birthday present to myself):

{Shop til you drop: 1/2/3/4/5}

{A Personal Reflection: My Healthy Life Journey}

If you follow me on Facebook, you know this past weekend I gained 1.4 pounds and was devastated (and even shed a tear - which took my leader by surprise). I have really made a commitment to eating healthy, drinking 8+ glasses of water daily, minimizing carbs, increasing fruits/veggies/protein, exercising 5 times a week - and to do all of that, not cheat once, and gain weight - it was almost like a slap in the face of all of my hard work. 

The first thing that I wanted to do right after my WW* meeting was to go and eat something really good - which meant something that was awful and full of carbs, fat, and cheese. THAT (eating) was exactly how I used to deal with stress, disappointment, loneliness, happiness, to be honest - all emotions. After some thought (while sitting in the WW parking lot) and weighing the pros and cons of me having a pig-out fest, I opted to go home and take an extremely long power walk with Addison. The walk did me a lot of good, and allowed my mind to get back "in the game". Once we returned home from the walk, I cooked a healthy meal - TBLETC (turkey bacon, lettuce, fried egg white, tomato, low fat cheese sandwhich) with a fruit salad that equaled 6 WW points+ (vs. the 30+ points the Five Guys burger and fries would have cost me) and I felt good....and strong...and in control. 

As much as I wanted to quit after my meeting on Saturday, I know I have grown because I didn't allow this small setback to keep me from moving forward. This week, I will continue to do everything that I've been doing and hopefully this Saturday I will see a loss on the scale. Moving forward, while the scale number is important to me - I will focus on inches lost, and my continued strength in my workouts...eventually, I'll see results - at least that is way they say (and in my heart I know this is true)...

Thanks for listening and THANK YOU for all of the encouragement - it truly keeps me going. While I don't plan to turn this blog into a weight loss blog, by keeping you up to date on my journey helps keep me accountable (I hope you don't mind) - next up: my before pic (yikes)!

*ww = Weight Watchers

*If you haven't already, don't forget to sign up for the GIVEAWAY - it ends today at 3PM ET.