Yesterday's workout have left me all kinds of sore. To say I'm awkward moving, is an understatement.

LOVE IT!

I broke out the kettlebells and dusted off the Jillian Michaels dvd....

About half way through the workout, I really thought about increasing the weight & using my 10 pound kettlebell because the 5 pounds felt way too easy.

Here's a sampling....


It was a lot of swinging and a butt ton of squats.

I would definitely recommend Jillian's kettlebell workout. It was a great weighted cardio. The circuits are not difficult. The cueing is great - the moves are easy to understand.

She is constantly reminding beginners to not let go of the kettlebell during the swings - I could only imagine if MattyB came home to find the TV totally smashed because I threw the kettlebell at it.

You go through the circuits twice before moving on. Not a lot of abdominal movements, but you are engaging your core through the entire workout.

Around the last circuit I finally started feeling the burn. So after the cool down, I went ahead & did my chest & back circuit, since I was not totally sore. (Plus I like maximizing B's nap time!!!!)

This morning however, totally different story. My hamstrings & quads are killing me!!!

But I love it. It's a pleasant reminder of all the work I did.

Do you agree with the "no pain, no gain" philosophy?

I have a mad love for statement necklaces. They can take your from frumpy to chic in a nano second.

The Dot Bloom has been helping me the past week to not look like I put zero effort in.

The term "summer reading" brings up oodles of painful memories from elementary, middle school, & highschool days! Anyone else share in that?

My how times change when you age!

I've always loved reading but as the years pass, there is less & less time for it! (At least in my opinion)

Enter my current read: The Compound Effect

I was recommended this book by a friend & fellow "Stella & Dot" gal. I used to 'up my nose' at anything that may closely resemble a "self help" book. I only wanted fiction.

Nowadays, I seem to gravitate towards the self help titles :) ha, there's a very good chance many facets of my life need improvement!

I'm about half way in to this book & find much merit in what the author is saying. While I originally picked this up for the sales aspect & growing my business, I am finding it so relevant for nearly every aspect of my life.

For instance, Darren Hardy mentions the power of writing down goals and also keeping logs on what you're doing to achieve said goals. No it's not some genius idea...it is one of those points that is a no brainer. Like it was staring you in your face the entire time.

Plus it gave me an excuse for new notebooks :)
Hello, May Designs!


Perhaps the most resounding thing that has stuck out to me thus far in The Compound Effect is that small changes over time produce huge results. The author gives the example of reducing caloric intake by 150 calories each day - while that caloric deficit will not produce immediate changes in physical appearance, over the course of 18 months however, the author noted a 33 pound reduction in weight!

Slow and steady.

I know that's where I often lose hope. We live in a society where instant gratification is important. We have fast food chains, email, text messaging, etc. Most people start a new workout regimen & give up on it 2 weeks later if they have not seen a 20 pound weight loss or a 6 pack develop.

It's definitely mind over matter. It's a work out in itself just trying to retrain your mind! Forming good habits is the key to achieving any goal. Want to lose 10 pounds? Start writing down what you eat & drink every day. Every little thing. You'll be surprised to see where you are wasting calories, and perhaps that you are eating more than you thought you were!

Keep in mind, comparison is the thief of joy. Let's stop playing the comparison game & just figure out how 'you' can be the best 'you'!

I am the utter WORST with remembering what I've signed up for and when "free trials" or what have you, run out. Hence my love / hate with POPSugar's Must Have box.

I love the idea behind it though. And I'm rather addicted to gift opening :)

So now is about time I started posting my love / hates on here for you all to either concur or argue.

Here is the Must Have box for June!

On their site it says "Addicted to Sweat is inspired by workout regimen that I do consistently to take care of my mind and body. My trainer Nicole and I have created this program that has helped give me the body I have today" - Madonna

What is on your summer wishlist?

Here's mine.....
(If you click on the images, they will direct you to the retailer)

MattyB and I had to take a trip to Long Beach, CA for a business convention this past weekend. We left the humid southeast Friday night & arrived in 2 hours later to LAX :)

Oh that time change.

So here is a wonderful synopsis of our trip as told by Instagram & pictures on my phone.

If you ever make it to Tampa, FL....you must pay a visit to The Columbia. It's a historical landmark & it has some awesome food. It was a pleasant surprise to find that our airport now has a mini version!

admiring my nails & my "special date" :)

So I ate these sinful creations called 'black bean cakes'. Literally like a deviled crab, but without the crab & with black beans. They were served with sour cream AND guacomole. It took every bone in my body to NOT spoon the remainder of the guacomole into my mouth.

temptation at its finest!

Boarded our plane at 7pm EST, landed in California at 9:15pmPST.

Hopped off the plane at LAX with a dream & no cardigan. 
It was chilly.

After a horrendous time at LAX, we finally made it to our hotel. I'm not gonna lie, part of the "horrendous" visit comes from the fact that it was a total buzz kill. I had built up this grand idea in my head that I would have some celebrity sightings & that TMZ would stop us on the way to our car.

Neither happened. Buzz kill.

So anyways, the car took us to our hotel & we hit the hay. Flights from the east coast to west coast & vice versa are so draining.

We had to get up early the next morning to tend to business. Once that nonsense was done, we meandered about the area.

ventured to the marina area

Looked for lunch around 10am PST because we were still on EST.
Ended up at the movies to see The Hangover 3 (a matinee....holy cow).


Once we had our fill of touristy shenanigans, we ventured back to the hotel. I indulged in a fabulous Frap & some people watching.

perhaps i should have opted for tanning....

We had business to do that night, so off to the races it was.


 Followed by an overpriced dinner at a restaurant in the marina area.



The next day was more business. By this point my feet were KILLING me. 



I love my wedges, and rarely have the chance of wearing them. So duh, a weekend away with the hubby, no baby - I was pulling out all the stops.

Pssshhhhhh! My feet were not having it.

We finished out our day with a yummy meal at Yen Sushi on 2nd Street. Delish!

riding the elevator down :) didn't snap a picture of Yen

Our last day - I bugged Sarah to meet up with me for coffee. It was such a refreshing break from work. She's as down to earth in person as she is on her blog.


After coffee it was back to the convention for the last time! I sported flats rather than the wedges. Finally wised up a bit.

Once our business portion of the trip was finally done, we had a few hours to waste. So we ate at the Rock Bottom Brewery across from our hotel. Granted it was 4pm PST, so we arrived in perfect time for their happy hour. I have zero interest in beer, but appetizers I'm ALL about - - -> and they were YUM!

After engorging ourselves we walked again & ended up at this $1 Book Store.....literally everything is $1. I'm too much of an impulsive buyer and felt like I HAD to buy SOMETHING. Seriously, it was a BUCK!

However it was such a stressful situation because nothing was organized. It was like rows of books that were sometimes in alphabetical order by author, but many times just stacked one in front of the other. Rummaging is not my forte.

Needless to say, I grabbed a sub par book by a familiar author.

By this point we scurried back to the hotel to wait for the car.

navigator aka concierge

The hotel had the cutest little lounge area. It was decorated like a boutique hotel. Crystal lamps, zebra print chairs, very modern furniture, and eclectic accents. This was my favorite spot to people watch.

It was time to leave - so back to LAX.

After 4 hours of waiting at LAX we boarded the plane & headed home. Left the west coast at 10:40pm PST and arrived in at 6am EST.

I detest red eyes.

Landed in the good ole Trampa, loaded up, hit Starbucks, stopped in to the office, and then picked up this cute little nugget!