Since I had a rather wordy post earlier – feel free to add to the discussion on the “health persona” of blogging – I shall share the weekend update links now. In case you missed it:

• I Didn’t Like It – my first negative review of a product
• What Are You Doing To Me?! – 8 mile run to jump back into workouts
• Body Love Song – the duet my body and mind created to an Adam Lambert song
• FFF Features of the Week – included a Baby B laughing video!
• Self-Love Reflection: People CAN Change – overcoming binging through pregnancy and fitness

Now back to regularly scheduled blogging…

Bloggers, quite frankly, rock. Whenever I meet up with a great group of blog friends, it never fails to transform into the highlight of my day. I had the pleasure of dining with an amazing group of twelve Atlanta bloggers this past weekend. Our group just keeps getting bigger and bigger! Which only means it gets better and better as well. Yep. Bloggers rock!

 
From left to right front row: Carol, Katy, Laura, me, Katy. From left to right back row: Lauren, Alayna, Lee, Lindsay, Laura, Kristy, and Brooke.

When making lunch plans, they don’t suggest the general standbys of Chilis or Taco Mac. They seek out little gems such as R Thomas Grill – a kitschy restaurant serving a wide variety of healthy (and amazingly delicious!) options.

Their eyes don’t bug out when you say you spent your morning running 8 miles. In fact, they have their own race stories or workout adventures to share.

 
taken from Lindsay @ The Atlanta Running Mom

They have no problems opening up and chatting away too. It feels so natural!

They are right there with you when whipping out cameras for food…

…and relate all too well to the trying dilemma of figuring out what to order.

It took me 47 years, but I finally landed on the portabella melt sandwich with lots of grilled veggies and a side of cinnamon sweet potatoes. It delighted me!

And for the record – you know a restaurant has a lot of good sounding options if a blogger crew shows up and nearly everyone orders something different because there are that many eye-catching items on the menu.

Bloggers also rock because they get just as excited as you do over things like Love Grown Foods granola.

Thanks to the Love Grown team for providing me with some samples so I could spread the love with my friends. I hope you all like them! 🙂

And finally, they have husbands who totally understand the need for a plethora of pictures and happily oblige with a mid-summer-day-way-too-hot-out photo shoot. Thank you Brooke’s husband!

And don’t blink an eye when the photo shoot includes us holding up bags of granola.

Yep. Bloggers rock. I can’t wait for our next get together!! Perhaps it will be bigger and better again. The Atlanta blogging scene just keeps expanding. My last count had us at almost 25 and it wouldn’t surprise me if others lurk in the shadows. Let me know if you’re in the area and want to get in on future meet-up action!

• Complete the sentence: Bloggers rock because ____________ .
• Have your friends, family, significant others gotten used to the picture taking, blog talk, and everything else that goes along with blogging?

I hope you all have gotten your bid on today for The Great Fundraising Act! You still have until 9:30 pm EST to bid on my Lemon Raspberry Muffins and your choice of FFF shirt!

Has everyone had a good day so far? Mine was pretty “meh”. I had a headache most of the day and my hamstrings/butt hindered walking for the day. I can get so sore in my hamstrings so easily. I don’t mind a little soreness at times, but it never seems to fail that my hamstrings are either comfortable or suuuupppperrrr tight. Never just slightly sore. Not a fan. I even had to put aside my workout I had planned for today and go with an unplanned rest day. If you can call taking the kids to a play group event at a playground a true day of rest, that is. ;) 

I’m actually kind of surprised that I have such soreness going on in my legs after a low-key workout yesterday. Yesterday’s plan involved a two mile easy run and light cross training. I completed the run on the treadmill yet again and followed it up with some time on the elliptical at an easy pace and resistance. Thank goodness for our gym’s Cardio Cinema room playing Sweet Home Alabama to keep me distracted!

I had impeccable timing because I showed up just as the movie started playing. I had to peel myself away because I wanted to see the end. For some reason, I can’t remember the details of how it ended. Although, of course I know who she ends up with. Chick flicks are nothing, if not predictable.

That doesn’t mean I will ever stop watching them, though. In fact, they now rank at the top of my preferred movie watching lists. I have always enjoyed a romantic comedy, but used to never choose one over a good suspense film. Now, though? I just can’t take suspense films anymore apparently! We tried watching the movie The Law Abiding Citizen for our at home date night on Saturday night and I had to beg Peter to turn it off. The plot line of a widowed husband seeking vengeance on the murderers of his wife and daughter literally had me sick to my stomach.

I’m not so delusional to think that things like murder don’t happen in our world, but I simply can’t stomach a movie that focuses on such stories anymore. Now, with my own family, whenever I see a film with such plot lines I find myself sucked into dark thoughts of “what if something like that ever happened to us”. It depresses me too much. I literally started getting shaky, anxious, and nauseous from watching. Overdramatic, much?

Luckily I have a good husband who happily obliged to finishing the movie on his own time and switching to something light-hearted to watch together. Even when something like Notting Hill caught my eye in the Netflix streaming options.

Guess I’ve been in the mood for old school chick flicks? Poor Peter. I bet he misses the days when movies like Saw ranked at the top of my list.

• What is your favorite movie genre? Any that you just can’t stand to watch?
• Where do you HATE feeling sore from a workout?