Hello, associates! It’s April! I’m very pleased with myself for making it by means of winter, and I’m absorbing each second of this unbelievable spring climate.

I’m glad you’re right here! Heck, I’m glad I’m right here. 😂 (Winter was ROUGH.)

{If you happen to’re new to Friday Thoughts posts and questioning what the heck is happening, often I pop in with an actual life replace on all of the issues – in the present day is that day!}

Household/Child Replace: Pace Fashion

• We presently have one highschool tennis participant and one center faculty tennis participant – it’s so enjoyable watching them each work arduous at this newer sport for them! And it’s lots much less nerve-racking than watching wrestling matches. 😬
• Talking of wrestling, my 16-year previous fractured his jaw at the highschool district wrestling event (a few of you most likely noticed my updates on Instagram about this). It was a season-ending damage, and he had emergency surgical procedure to repair the traumatic damage. He simply acquired cleared to renew regular actions and eat all.the.issues after six LONG weeks consuming a tender/liquid weight-reduction plan. He was such a trooper (and had so many teammates, coaches, associates, and relations assist and love him by means of the restoration). #milkshakesforever

• Brian purchased a small enterprise and is lastly fulfilling a lifelong dream of being his personal boss. He’s working arduous to construct and develop this print store (which has been in enterprise for a number of many years!) – it has given me a brand new appreciation for supporting native companies!
• My second oldest (who doesn’t like me sharing pictures of him, however he did give me permission to share this bit of information) not too long ago obtained an LDS church mission name to serve for 2 years within the Philippines (Manila mission). He leaves July 1. 🥺 We’ve been immersed in researching correct footwear, making use of for visas, and naturally…attempting our hand at some Filipino recipes. Making lumpia and hen adobo this coming Sunday! Any expertise within the Philippines?? We’d love to listen to it.

Kitchen transform

Final Friday Thoughts submit I talked concerning the kitchen transform we had been presently present process. It’s completed! And ooof, I hope I by no means should reside by means of that once more. 🤪 We survived on Costco meals, a sizzling plate for warming issues up, and a whole lot of chilly cereal.

Right here’s the earlier than:

Right here’s the after:

We knocked out the again wall of the kitchen and used the house workplace area to develop the kitchen. After 22 years of ready and wishing, I lastly have double wall ovens, and I like them simply as a lot as I hoped I might.

If you wish to see extra in-depth movies of the kitchen, faucet by means of this Instagram spotlight – towards the tip of the spotlight, I share a kitchen replace.

We’re presently constructing on a small addition to reclaim the misplaced workplace area, and it must be performed subsequent week! Probably the most thrilling a part of the brand new addition is that this wallpaper that’s going up within the laundry room. 😉🐓

(Pray for me, as I haven’t touched wallpaper because the mid-80’s once I needed to painstakingly peel off some very cussed and really paisley-patterned wallpaper from a room in our home, and I nonetheless haven’t gotten over that traumatic – and countless – expertise.)

Cookbook Replace

BIG NEWS!! The cookbooks HAVE ARRIVED and can ship out very quickly!

If you happen to pre-ordered a e-book, you’ll obtain a affirmation (through e-mail or textual content, relying on the way you signed as much as obtain updates) when your order ships.

I can not wait so that you can lastly get this cookbook in your fingers and in your kitchen!

The e-book is over 300 pages with a photograph for EVERY single one of many 140+ recipes. The standard is excellent and has exceeded all the things I hoped for! I hope you like it. 💗

If you happen to haven’t ordered but, there’s nonetheless time to get in on this primary print run. Cookbooks will be ordered right here.

Climate blanket

After a good friend despatched me this reel, I made a decision a climate blanket wanted to be in my 2024 plans.

What’s a climate blanket, you ask? (It’s an amazing query! I had no thought till a number of months in the past!) It’s a easy single-crochet blanket the place every row represents the excessive temperature every day of the 12 months.

I instantly ordered yarn from my native JoAnn’s retailer, picked it up the following day, and began crocheting! Thus far, it has been tremendous enjoyable and never overwhelming (aside from one little add-on undertaking I made a decision to do with it that I’ll report on later…simply in case I hand over 😂).

One row takes me about 11 half of minutes to crochet. I’m hoping to get just a little sooner (there are 230 single crochets in every row). I’m not engaged on it on daily basis, however a few instances every week, I’ll sit down and catch up.

It’s truly helped me decelerate within the evenings just a little bit whereas I sit and dutifully examine my climate app, make notations on my spreadsheet 🤓, and chat with my youngsters whereas I crochet. Everybody in my household is surprisingly invested within the climate blanket. 🤣

Issues I’m Loving

• Mantis: this was the profitable recreation at Christmas. So, so enjoyable (and extremely straightforward to be taught). Additionally, the included booklet on Mantis shrimp is 🤯
• Put on When Bracelets: loving these bracelets – and so are my youngsters! I purchased the bracelets for them for Easter, and the scripture messages and reminders are so superb and uplifting (the place whenever you want braveness, the place when it’s essential to decide, the place whenever you want somebody). 💗
• Sherpa-Lined Hoodies: love, love, love these hoodies. They match true to measurement (unisex sizing) or perhaps barely small, so measurement up in case you are in between sizes. I do know hoodie season is coming to an in depth, however these are well worth the purchase any time of the 12 months!
• Cargo Pants: my teenage boys have a number of pairs of those (black, grey and brown), and put on them continually. They’ve held up tremendous nicely, wash and dry completely, and have gotten the boys to interrupt out of their Nike sweat pants regime (no judgment there, they’ve a mother who wears joggers just about on daily basis of her life 🤣). They’re informal sufficient that they don’t really feel dressed up, however elegant sufficient to put on to household photos or the like.
• Nutri-Blender: my boys make protein smoothies day by day after they come house from sports activities practices or gymnasium exercises. Or simply for an after dinner snack BECAUSE THEY CONSUME CALORIES CONSTANTLY. My 15-year previous was gifted this blender for Christmas, and it rapidly turned a sizzling commodity and is now utilized by everybody. I’m stunned at how nicely it really works, and I like that it might make single servings, as a result of simply between you and me, nobody round right here was doing an excellent job at washing out the full-size blender. 👀
• Pores and skin Serum: have you ever heard of this serum? It’s superb! Like, wow-level superb. And really cheap for one thing that has over 75,000 five-star critiques. I put it on at night time beneath my common moisturizer. My pores and skin feels extremely tender and rather more hydrated than earlier than. Extremely advocate!
• Footrest pillow: my 16-year previous gave me this footrest pillow for my birthday a number of months in the past, and actually, it was essentially the most intelligent, most helpful present ever. I’m at all times asking the youngsters to run and discover me a small stool from some nook of the home once I sit on the couches so I can elevate my ft just a bit. I suppose you would say this present was partly for me and partly for him. 😂 I exploit it once I work at my desk, additionally. LOVE IT.

Protein ⬆️

I’m NOT the gal to present anybody recommendation about monitoring meals, counting energy or determining macros. During the last eight years, I’ve tried actually arduous to deal with intuitive consuming (I learn the e-book, and it modified my pondering on so many features of consuming and well being) as a result of I discovered that once I tried to trace my energy or macros, it turned an obsessive psychological recreation that was not good for my psychological well being or how I felt about my physique.

As I repeat to my youngsters on the day by day: your physique is an instrument, not an decoration (credit score to Magnificence Redefined for that mantra).

ANYWAY, this isn’t recommendation or a lecture on any of that, as a result of each individual has their system and means of doing issues.

However, I simply needed to say that earlier this 12 months, I made a decision to be extra intentional about ensuring I used to be getting sufficient protein so I may construct lean muscle as I’ve been lifting weights extra the final 12 months or so (with the Sadie Lively app).

So I downloaded the ProteinPal app (it solely tracks protein), and I discovered that despite the fact that I thought I used to be getting sufficient protein, I used to be falling far in need of my purpose (purpose being: 110-115 grams per day). As I’ve made a extra targeted effort to eat lean protein in my meals, I’ve seen adjustments in my urge for food (I’m infrequently hungry between meals), in my exercises (I’ve extra power), and the way I really feel total (💪🏼).

This has been an amazing change for me! (P.S. I’m nonetheless consuming cookies and bread and greens and fruit and all the opposite issues, too. 😉)

Now it’s your flip! I’d love to listen to all of YOUR ideas within the feedback under. Something associated to the above submit or simply usually what’s occurring in your world!

I like connecting with every of you, and I respect each time you are taking a minute to share a chunk of your life with me. 💗