Wow! Thank you for all the responses to my last post. Learning so many wonderful things that help make you you puts joy in my heart. I truly consider each of you a friend and knowing the intricacies that make you all tick helps me feel that friendship grow. Love! Check out the comments to find and hear about other awesome bloggers.

In accordance with one of my pet peeves I shared yesterday, today had me considering the areas in my life where no excuses are allowed. My day began with the chance to make excuses, but I quickly decided that was not possible. Then it just continued from there.

There are no excuses…for not spending at least 15 minutes in the presence or reflection of God. Makenzie woke me waaaayyyy too early (more on that in a bit) and robbed me of my quiet morning time when I typically read my Bible and pray. It would be easy to just push those 3 short chapters of reading back until tomorrow, but that is not an option. God created me; He sent Jesus to die for me; He forgives me for oh so many things he really shouldn’t. How can I say no to spending time with Him? Especially when it starts my day on the right foot? I totally notice a difference without that time.

There are no excuses…not to eat tofu on a regular basis. It is delicious. No doubt about it. Last night, when the hubs, the lil sis, the baby, and I hit up a fave local Chinese joint I knew tofu would appear before me and thrill my stomach.

Yum, yum in my tum tum. And then this came in the mail. Solidifying tofu as a regular meal in our house.

There are no excuses…not to dance with a tiara. Oh the things you will do as a mother to bring a smile to your kid’s face. And to humiliate yourself in the blogger world. The worst part of it? That little sucker hurts!!!

There are no excuses…for charging an arm and a leg for polka dotted party plates.

I’m throwing my friend’s lingerie shower in a month. She wants black and hot pink with polka dots. Yea…$6 per 8 pack of plates or napkins later is not a pretty thing.

There are no excuses…for not clicking THIS LINK! Okay, okay. I realize that is low, but I worked hard on my next article and just a click means the world. Purrrrttttyyyy please?! It’s about massage and pregnancy.

There are no excuses…for not loving your body. You are a fabulous creation, with unique qualities and things that make you beautiful. Love you for who you are! You deserve that joy and happiness. Also, pick up things like this gem that you happen to find while out for some errands.

I definitely bought it. I think Caitlin is fabulous and I want to support her and the message Operation Beautiful shares. I can’t wait to read it!

There are no excuses…for not being organized. I also picked up a tabbed notebook today to help organize all my random blog, article, and to-do list thoughts. My previous mini spiral had serious issues.

There are no excuses…for not getting in a workout when you have no good reason to skip. M’s early wakeup call this morning came because she is a bit under the weather. That meant skipping the gym for me. I have no problem missing workouts if I physically don’t feel up to it, or simply cannot fit it into my day. Neither of those applied today. So no gym meant I pulled out this bad boy.

Yes, that would be a huge old-school CD case packed with my fitness DVDs. I have way too many. Wait. Take that back. I don’t have enough, seeing as Insanity and TurboFire are missing in this collection. This little pouch will be my best friend post baby when most of my workouts are at home. Or in days like today, where a Chalene TurboJam Cardio Party fills in for the gym.

You can always make excuses. And you can also always choose to ignore them. Choose wisely. 😉

• What do you not accept excuses from yourself over?
• What is the worst excuse you have ever given? I think mine would be not returning a homework assignment to my class and telling them “the dog ate their homework”. Sadly, it was true. How ironic is that? LOL

Since it is Sunday and I don’t blog on Saturdays it is time to get caught up with the weekend. How was your weekend? Do anything exciting?

I had a few highlights. First off, I finally decided what to purchase with the $60 certificate CSN stores offered to give me as a thank you for a prior giveaway. I decided after sweeping our first floor and all the dog hair I needed a bare floor vacuum good for pet hair. Not a bedroom vanity. Not a fancy kitchen gadget. A vacuum. I’m not crazy. My back just let me know where to spend the money.

The biggest highlight came Friday night with the Atlanta blogger meet-up! A group of eight of us met up for dinner at Seasons 52.

From left to right – Emily (all the way from Boston!), Laura (previously of Laura Dishes), Lee, Tyler, Sarena, Anna (a cool reader), Em (+ baby), and myself (+ baby).

We had a fabulous time chatting and getting to know each other better. It always amazes me how comfortable I am with other bloggers. I’m not shy by any means but I just feel so in sync with ladies such as these. We ended up spending three hours dining and discussing all sorts of things – from blogging to personal things we’ve experienced. Totally awesome. I just love connecting with bloggers!!!

The food awed me as well. Seasons 52 prides itself on serving seasonal food choices to include the freshest ingredients, with all items on the menu below 475 calories. Niiiice. Especially when you consider you can order things like a huge flatbread with steak, blue cheese, mushrooms, and spinach…

…and then top it all off with the perfect amount of carrot cake decadence in a shot glass.

New friends + great food = made my weekend. I feel as though Saturday doesn’t even deserve an appearance after that. It was pretty standard. I went to the gym for a light 1.5 miles on the elliptical before Power. I am starting to get annoyed with my favorite instructor though. She asks me numerous times during class how I’m doing and always says things like “I’m keeping my eye on you”. All because I’m pregnant. I appreciate her care and understand she is doing her job, but she doesn’t need to persistently point it out during class. I have told her my experience working out while pregnant, how I already adjusted the workout to suit my body & lift lighter weights, and that I know to listen to my body & will not hesitate to stop if needed. Let me do my thing!!

The remainder of Saturday I shopped and organized a baby gift basket to donate from our Sunday school class to a Relay for Life auction. It went much better than I anticipated and I’m sad I forgot to snap a photo of it! Saturday night we watched Alice in Wonderland. I hated it. I normally love anything Johnny Depp is in. This was a total fail.

Today was great. I love every Sunday. What’s not to love? The chance to worship such an amazing, loving, and powerful God makes each Sunday a positive experience. I can never get over the fact that He died for me and how understanding that provides endless joy in my life. Things aren’t always easy, but my life never lacks joy or a sense of abundance. Praising Him never gets old. And now I simply plan to relax with the family before heading back into another week.

• Do you like to make connections with other bloggers? How? I love meeting bloggers and the support of such an endlessly loving and giving community. I like fining new blogs to peek at through Twitter. I also will randomly comment on blogs I don’t typically read by clicking through the comments on blogs I love. I can never get enough of this great blogosphere. The chance to meet in person certainly tops the list though.
• What is something other people do that annoys you, even though you know they mean well?

Examiner Articles: Even if you can’t read through completely, please give a click!! Comments are always welcome. 🙂

Tips on nutrition and getting more produce in your diet HERE.

The benefits of exercise during pregnancy HERE.