Love Me a FRIDAY and a Giveaway!

Over the last few weeks I've gotten more brave with just hitting "publish" on my post instead of combing over them one (really ten) more time. On twitter I'm trying my best to not over think tweets and/or wonder what others will gather, instead I'm just opening up more and sharing pieces of the days worth in an attempt to just be more there. I've gotten back into Instagram. I had IG (and twitter) long before my blogging days and seriously - I fell in love with IG, like hardcore, then life got busy Pinterest erupted and stole time from IG. But I've gotten better at taking a few minutes to share what's happening and document life, it's been fun! Within minutes I can easily catch up with friends and fave bloggers.

Now, even bigger than all of this is sending out emails. Can I just say how important it is to reach out to other bloggers? Just checking in on bloggers and following up with more personal notes, really taking time to let them know you care makes a huge difference. It's funny because all of this is most likely easy for others but I've def struggled with a/ balancing time and b/ just being more me and vocal. It's a safe place to hide behind the blog but it's also a very boring place.

It has all made a big difference in my blogging journey. It's made this place more real and tangible. It's helped me be more secure with my decisions here and more creative with my future wants. People are kind, people are nurturing  they want to help, they want to encourage. They want to know you. I for one am ALWAYS open to emails and having more sideline talk....I've yet to meet another blogger who isn't the same. So as you blog on, I encourage you to reach out :)

Things I'm loving this week.....

1// hubs breaking away from work for a random lunch with me.
he never does this! total work-aholic that man... seems he was having a debbie downer day in the office and needed some wifey time. I ate up every french fry and every minute of extra time with him :)

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2// enrolled in the AFAA certification class offered at my local gym!
this is more exciting than you may think. It's been a bucket list item for sometime and I've always hesitated to go through with it. But, something just clicked this year. Maybe it's the pending move, maybe it's frustration with the same job field for 13+ years, or maybe it's just time I step up and focus on my passions.
AFAA certification is globally accredited and applies to all gyms. There's a lot of studying involved and much more required than this one day but this is a necessary achievement to make my way towards possible group fitness instructor or personal trainer :))

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3// FINALLY freed up storage space on my iphone by using Dropbox. People I had soooo many photos on my iphone that I couldn't take another one -much less update. But, I can't stand not having my pictures available on my phone. Dropbox and all you twitter loves helped me fix my phone and not loose a single memory! thank youuuuuuuuu :)

4// Hydrated like a maniac this week and dropped to just walks, in prep for Saturdays 10K.
I really missed my workouts and runs this week but with being so busy and knowing that an hour long run was ahead of me, it was the right thing to do. Last year hubs carried his 60+ lb. ruck sack for the race...we did intervals to make the distance more manageable. This year we're leaving that sucker behind and running the whole 6.2 miles. I love to run for about 30 minutes, after that I start wondering "why am I still running?" (hehe) but this race is full of energy that pushes you through to the finish line! Wish us luck!!

5// Wishing a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my youngest! You may have already caught this but he's turning 2 this weekend. These are pics from last years big 1st bday :) He loved every second of smash the cake and totally cheesed for me through almost every picture. This year I'm not so sure I'll get as lucky with the photo's, the boy is an explorer, a curious one, and strong willed active tot. He's my little sweetie, love him to pieces and can't wait to celebrate his 2nd birthday with family and friends!


*Take a moment to reflect on the big and small things that make your week more beautiful.

I know this weeks H54F looks a tad different, just felt like changing it up! Hope you don't mind!
Another little twist on this Fridays post.... a GIVEAWAY!!!

Kara at Happy Go Lucky is hosting this Fun Friday giveaway along with me and 7 other funtastic bloggers!

Be sure to say HELLO to Kara!  

Her blog is rich in DIY's, fun linkys & hops and family//kid friendly treasures!

Classy Living / DC in Style / Happy Go Lucky / Heart Shaped Sweat / In Her Boots / Nestful of Love / Simply Lulu / Trusty Chucks / With Love, Rachel 

Use rafflecopter to enter:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

AND Weekend Bloglovin Hop