TODAY IS THE DAY + A GRATEFUL HEART

Hey guys! We are finally back from our trip and starting to get back to our normal routine! I plan on posting more about our trip + our weekend later this week but today I wanted to post about how excited I am to be starting another round of the 21 Day Fix today! I know I posted about how I was starting again about two weeks ago ... well ... we went on our trip and I decided I'd just wait until I got back to really get started. So today is the day!

I plan on using my blog & IG to post about my 21 days to keep myself accountable. I am also hosting a challenge group with my team that starts today that is going to be so much fun! We will be sharing recipes, grocery lists, and LOTS of motivation. 

If any of my readers have the 21 Day Fix already and want to join my challenge group please let me know and I can get you added. It's going to be fun + there are lots of prizes! My very first round of the 21 Day Fix I had a lot of results so I know I can get those same results & more this round. These were my results from my first round. 

Thats just one round of only 30 min work outs done at home, a clean eating meal plan that kept me full the entire time, and one delicious Shakeology a day! If you want these results too I'm here to help you! If you would like more information or would like to join a challenge group please fill out the form below!

There are tons of Wufoo features to help make your forms awesome.

Today I am grateful for my Beachbody teammates who keep me inspired and motivated to continue with this program. I am grateful that I am able to focus on my health. I am grateful that I am able to use Beachboy to build relationships with others and help them reach their goals! 

MY CHILDREN

Hey guys! I know I posted that I was on vacation & taking a break from blogging this week but I wanted to get on here and send you all to Emily's blog - Ember Grey! Today I will be guest posting on her blog where I will be sharing about the one thing that inspires me & has changed me for the better - MY CHILDREN. I love Emily's blog so I am so excited to be featured on there today!

And if you are coming from Emily's blog - HELLO! - thank you so much for stopping by! Here are some more pictures from a little photoshoot we went on to take the pictures just for the one thing post.  I told my sister I wanted some pictures of me and the babies so we went driving out in the middle of nowhere and found an old abandoned church beside this beautiful hay field. It was perfect.

SORRY!

So Gary & I are last minute people. We make plans & decide to go on trips last minute which is why there hasn't been a post on here in the past couple of days! Gary had to go to a work conference in New Hampshire but had to stop in NY first. My family lives right outside of NY so Gary dropped us off on his way! So we've been hanging out with my family this week! I usually do my posts the same day so I haven't had time to post anything this week. I have a post scheduled to go up tomorrow but until then I won't be posting until next week! Hope you all are having a great week! 

APPLE COOKIES | 21 DAY FIX (AND KID) APPROVED

I am currently doing another round of the 21 Day Fix which not only focuses on 30 minute daily work outs but also portion control and eating clean. Eating clean is a lifestyle change but it doesn't mean you can't enjoy delicious CLEAN treats! Most days in between meals I start to crave sweets and these apple cookies are delicious and fill me up. They are so easy to make that I usually just let Sophia make them after I cut the apple. I make mine with almond butter & dark chocolate chips but if you aren't a fan of these you can add peanuts, coconut or even chocolate covered raisins (all of these 21 Day Fix approved). 

INGREDIENTS

• 2-3 apples 
• almond butter
• dark chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

001. thinly slice apples - i cut mine into chips by cutting apple in half, cutting core out & then slicing into round chips.

002. spread almond butter butter onto apple chips.

003.  add chocolate chips (or whatever topping you'd like)

004. ENJOY!

 

See ... super easy and healthy. 21 Day Fix + kid approved so it's perfect! We also love this 21 Day Fix approved strawberry cheesecake! This treat counts as 1 PURPLE (one sliced apple), 1 TSP (almond butter) & 1 YELLOW (dark chocolate chips).

What are your favorite healthy treats?! 

OUR WEEKEND + A GRATEFUL HEART

Hey guys! How is it already Monday again? We had a really good holiday weekend! We spent our July 4th with our good friends Jesseca and Ross + their daughter Jolene. We went to a cook out, walked down to the river while the guys were on the boat, played on a small little playground, went to a new water park, and watched fireworks! It was a good weekend, exhausting but good and I know the kids had a great time! Now here to some pics from the weekend!

Today I am grateful for another good weekend with my family and for our friends who invited us to spend the holiday with them! What are you grateful for?

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Good Morning friends! Hope you had a fun 4th of July! I'll be posting more about our holiday weekend tomorrow on the blog! 

Here is what you might have missed this week on Sophia + Jax:

++ Last weekend we finally had the chance to try frozen custard.

++ I posted about our mini vacation that we took in the beginning of May to Charleston, SC and Virginia Beach.

++ I finally decided to stop making excuses about being healthy & started another round of the 21 Day Fix. 

++ I shared bits + pieces of my favorites from the past week. 

++ Sophia and Jax had a little photoshoot with their matching Rolling Stones outfits that I love! 

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!

Happy Saturday guys! I just wanted to get on here and share some pictures of the kids wearing their matching Rolling Stones outfits! Now time to finish getting ready and head out to enjoy our day! 

Hope everyone has a fun and safe 4th of July!

OH HEY, FRIDAY | WEEK TWO

Happy Friday guys! Hope everyone had a good week! Ours was good, went by fast but it was good! Now it's the weekend AND a holiday which I'm so excited for! We have plans to go to a cookout with friends. It'll be fun. And Gary took today off work so I already know it's going to be a good one.

Here are some of my favorites from this week:

001. K E E P I N G  E A C H  O T H E R  E N T E R T A I N E D

I used to worry so much about the age difference between Sophia + Jax. They are only fours apart but I would worry that because of this age gap they wouldn't want to play with each other. Growing up I had a sister that was just two years younger than me and we played all the time. I want that for my children. Now that Jax is getting a little older and hold himself up and ALMOST close to being mobile they having been playing a lot more which makes this momma's heart happy. It also helps that they can keep each other entertained so I can get things done. Sophia is just a good big sister!

002. O B S E S S E D  W I T H  P I N T E R E S T 

image via here

Am I the only one who is obsessed with Pinterest?! I go through phases where I don't get on Pinterest for weeks but then I get on one day and I've pinned a thousand pins and it's dinner time! I can literally spend all day on Pinterest. So much inspiration! I have learned so much about blogging, photography and cooking dinner from it.  

003. P L A Y  T I M E  & N A P  T  I M E 

The pictures above are normal scenes you will see daily during my weeks as a stay at home mom. Sophia is getting better at being able to play by herself now that her brother is here when I'm nursing him or he's napping. It was hard for her at first because she was so used to having me to sit down and play with her but baby brother needs me to. I do try to play with her when I am able to put Jax down for a nap without him needing me there beside him. He's getting better at napping by himself. 

004. L I B R A R Y  D A T E  W I  T H  S O P H I A

Yesterday my good friend Megan randomly stopped by the house to say hi and told me to get out of the house with Sophia while she watched Jax so Sophia and I headed to the library. Sophia and I hardly ever get time to just me and her so we both enjoyed it. She picked out a book & I FINALLY got ahold of 'You Are A Badass'. I've heard nothing but amazing things about this book so I'm excited to read it. I'm already about 30 pages in & enjoy it so far. Have you read this book?

005. F R E E  C L E A N  E A T I N G  G R O U P 

quote image via 

I mentioned yesterday about starting back up with the 21 Day Fix + Shakeology. I'm also getting back into coaching again and will be starting off with a Free Five Day Eating Group starting on Monday July 6th. Anyone is welcome to join! It'll be a Facebook group where my team and I will be sharing meal plans, recipes, motivation, work outs and grocery lists! If you are working on getting healthier or fit this is a great way of learning about setting healthy eating habits! AND IT'S FREE! If you are interested please let me know! (letterstosoph@gmail.com or comment below) We'd love to have you!

Hope you have a fun & safe holiday weekend!! 

NO MORE EXCUSES!

Back in February when I was about 4 months postpartum I decided it was time to start working out and getting my body back! I knew that finding someone to watch Sophia + Jax everyday while I went to the gym was going to be too much so I decided to try out the 21 Day Fix with Shakeology! 

I completed my first round of the 21 Day Fix & felt amazing! I had so much energy and got back down to my pre baby weight. I loved the program so much that I decided to become a coach. Well life got busy & I kept making up excuses to not work out or not put in an hour or two as a coach. So for the past three months I haven't been eating healthy, I haven't been working and my body can feel it. I want to feel good. I want to have energy so I can be a better mom for my babies. I want to feel like I did back in Feb and March when I was doing the 21 Day Fix + drinking my Shakeology daily. And all I have been thinking about is how happy and healthy I felt during that time.

Time to feel that way again. No more excuses!

Yesterday I started my first day of the 21 Day Fix + Shakeology. It was hard but I did it. I also followed the meal plans. I took a before and after picture that I am going to compare every week and share with you. This will keep me accountable as well as show my progress!

AND on Monday July 6th my team & I will be hosting a 5-Day Clean Eating Group on Facebook! We will be sharing meal plans, grocery lists, recipes and even some work outs and it's ALL FREE! You just have to show up and participate! If you are wanting to set healthy eating habits let me know (letterstosoph@gmail.com) & I will add you!

I am joining the lovely bloggers below and giving this new journey to a healthier me my all for the next 100 days + hopefully more! 

OUR MINI VACATION | VIRGINIA BEACH

Yesterday I posted about our mini vacation we took at the beginning of May. We decided that after leaving Charleston, SC we would make a trip to Virginia Beach to visit Gary's family. We were planning on surprising them but Gary ended up telling his mom while we were on our way there. We only stayed for the weekend but it was fun! We always enjoy our time in Virginia Beach. We relaxed, hung out with family and of course made a trip to the beach. It was also Jax's first time visiting VA Beach and meeting some of Gary's family members! We are planning on going back again this summer. I know Sophia will be so excited to go back!