How does time go by so fast? It's already Sunday afternoon! Yesterday went by in a blur...and not because I had some margaritas. I have to say I sometimes enjoy time going by fast. It means I am busy and am surrounded by lots of things to do. For this lady, that typically means things to do with friends or activities I thoroughly enjoy working on. God has blessed me by filling my life with things I am passionate about. Being a mother & wife, helping students, leading a Sunday class, blogging, involving myself in health & fitness, spending time with friends, and more. So being busy just reminds me how full my life is. He is amazing and never ceases to meet our needs and, on top of that, He abundantly gives joy that overflows. Can you tell I'm high on life today? That doesn't have to do with the margaritas either. 😉

This weekend wasn't anything too special. We didn't have any set plans since we were going to be out of town. Friday we just stayed in with dinner and some relaxation together. We even hit the sack by 9:00. Party hearty!

Saturday was a lot more exciting. I hit up the gym for Power + Kick classes. I have decided that mirrors in group exercise classes are not necessary and a pet peeve of mine.[Source]

I don't really see the point in them being all over. This could be nitpicky, but I realized it was a pet peeve of mine. Maybe I am being over dramatic, but I was in a spot right in front of a mirror for class on Saturday and it drove me crazy having to watch myself workout the entire time. It also gave me a lot of time to go from "I feel strong doing these squats" thinking to "Oh look at myself. My thighs/butt/hips jiggle so much while I'm jumping in Kick" thoughts. NOT COOL! I know I have the power to control my thoughts and fight the negative talk. The point is however that staring at myself for 2 hours distracted me from simply being able to feel strong and enjoy a quality workout. I know the argument for mirrors is that they can help people check their form...but in most exercises, if you are looking in a mirror you lose proper form by moving your neck out of alignment or you are being distracted by yourself or others you can see in them. Is it overthinking things to consider this can put too much of an emphasis on image? Maybe it would be okay if all mirrors looked like this:

That is the best Operation Beautiful message I have ever seen. That was on our church bathroom mirror this morning. I have never seen it up before. I wondered if it was an Operation Beautiful message but I didn’t see any note about the website. No matter. I thought it was really uplifting to see and maybe I will send it in to Caitlin as a note I found. 🙂

Now that I have rambled unnecessarily for too long, I will get back to the remainder of our Saturday. We decided to get together with some friends of ours. We went to the park to play with Makenzie.

Obviously I had fun making weird faces, going down slides, and pushing swings for insane lengths of time. All whilst drooling over our friend Dan’s camera. Hey, Peter. If you read this…that would be a great Mother’s Day present. Wishful thinking never hurts. Don’t dash my dreams before they’ve even started.

The fun began after the park. My buddy Nicole knows how to make a mean margarita. So I was not surprised when I downed three of these beauties over the course of the night.

I think the chips and tacos helped soak up some of the tequila. PS – Chips need salsa. Some people (raises hand) just don’t like Queso.

Not too much though. A little buzz never hurt anyone. Although I don’t think my 3 (ahem, strong) margaritas compared to baby M’s buzz. She was buzzing on sugar and presents. Dan & Nicole gave Makenzie a little backpack, a little purse, and a necklace just for fun. Then they topped it off with a cupcake. Clearly she was in heaven. And their love for M makes me forgive the lack of salsa. Kidding. Or maybe not. I take salsa seriously.

Check out Lisa's Giveaway here! I promise it will have you buzzing with happiness too.

Happy Satruday all!!! And happy first day of May. I am having a hard time believing that one though. There is no way it is already May. Hopefully May will bring some great things our way. And even though April didn’t include everything I could have hoped for right now, it did show me lots of things. It’s amazing all the little life lessons that happen if we just open our eyes. Some pointless, some necessary. And all exciting. I know I have had my share of little lessons this past month! So here are my top ten Lesson of a Mommy Blogger: April Edition.

1. I don’t need meat in my life as much as I previously thought.

I know this one might be a little bit surprising. I am in no way saying that I am becoming a vegetarian, because I do still like eating meat and I feel it is a great way for me to eat to truly get a balanced diet and the nutrition my body needs. However, I used to make sure I had so much protein in my diet and lower fat because I thought that was the best way to have a fit body. Au contraire I have learned. I have been enjoying lots of meat-free meals and options lately and don’t miss having to plate some chicken with my dinner all the time. When I made the sausage & lentil soup, I discovered I loved lentils and I even served some of my bowls sausage free and didn’t miss it. I found a new love for tofu and how delightful it can be to cook with. And I don’t feel guilty for having a frozen meat alternative product because it is higher in carbs and lower in protein than chicken, like I would have awhile ago. Opening up new options in the way I eat is fun, but this girl won’t be saying adios to her chicken or beef either.

2. I actually LIKE yoga.

Remember, at the beginning of April, Nicole started the “Do What You Don’t Challenge” and I decided that I should incorporate yoga regularly into my routine? Well, I have stuck with it and that won’t be changing because I love the calm, strength, peace, empowerment that yoga brings to me. Plus the extra flexibility. I needed to improve on that.

3. Don’t be surprised if you get sucked into a TV series you didn’t expect.

Watched ONE episode of this online and now I have to watch it every week. I don’t know what it is. It doesn’t compare to Friends for instance. But I still find myself watching. Maybe it is the fact that it is actually a decent enough drama television series. Because we all know the reality shows are starting to wear on my nerves.

4. You will never fully be able to understand the ways of kids. Like how she is scared of the baby swing, but not the regular swing. And how running around bottomless is the best thing since sliced bread.

5. That not only will you never be able to fully understand how kids think, but also that you will never be able to fully protect them. Exhibit A:

We had a tumble down the stairs this week and it was awful being powerless to stop it. It was only the bottom 4 or 5 steps but it did lead to a nasty bump on the head and a bitten/bloody lip. I tell ya, that moment was probably the second scariest of my life with Makenzie. The first of course being when she stopped breathing and we had to rush her to the ER and spend four days in the hospital. I’ll save a Flashback Friday for that one. This week she was fine and her normal self within the hour.

6. Georgia weather is wonky. Could you puh-lease make up your mind if it is going to be sunny or rainy??? Doing both, in the same day, within my line of vision just confuses me. And we already know I am easily confused, so if the weather could be taken out of that equation that would be great. Thanks weather man!

7. Old Navy has great, cheap priced stay-at-home mommy wear. Comfy shorts and basic tees for cheaper than a jar of organic coconut oil/butter?? Yes, please!

8. I can actually run more than 3 minutes at a time! Yes, I am still feeling the excitement of that one.

9. Blogger friends are the BEST!

The fun I had meeting up with two wonderful ladies and all the supportive comments/emails I have received this month have been phenomenal. Thank you so much. Annndddd….hello to all the new readers that are popping up and commenting. I love connecting with you all so keep the comments and visits coming. 🙂

10. I am strong. No further description necessary.