Labor Day Fun, Thankfulness, and Yummy Eats

Monday: Happy Labor Day, everybody! I hope you all had an awesome and food filled day.

img_0145We started our day off with coffee. How funny is Kyle’s cup? I found it at Bed, Bath, and Beyond a few months ago, and it is the only cup he’ll use.

Kyle, Chance, and I went to Mounds Park for a hike. On the way, we stopped at Dick’s so I could pick up a new backpack for our hike. I love it! I wrote about it in my Favorites Friday post!

img_0150Kyle putting on Chance’s vest. He wears this when we go out in most public places because it helps people leave him alone because he is in training. He does well with people from afar but still gets a little nervous when people come up to pet him without giving him a chance to meet them. He’ll get more comfortable with it with time, but for now, the vest works great and people respect it!

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We went almost 4 miles! It was hot but still super nice outside! My boots and new backpack were lifesavers.  The park was almost empty. We were so surprised but happy!

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Water for all of us, cashews, orange slices, and sunscreen.

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A couple of miles in, we stopped at the river to let Chance swim. It cools him off and re-energizes him super fast! You can barely hear it, but he hums when he swims. It’s hilariously adorable.

img_0165img_0160We were filthy but had a great day!

On the ride home, we listened to an episode of the Rise Together podcast. This one was all about how to show up for your partner from Rachel’s perspective. Loved it!

Once we got home, we gave Chance a bath and made dinner. I also may have picked this hat up when I bought my backpack, and I LOVE IT! I didn’t realize how many cute items Patagonia makes… trouble!

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I baked sliced potatoes in the oven with a little bit of olive oil and onion powder. Kyle grilled beef, pepper, and onion kabobs. I think everything tastes better on the grill! Kyle and I are trying all of the beers from Aldi, and this one is definitely our favorite so far! It’s light, refreshing, and has a great taste! After dinner, we cleaned up because we were a mess from our hike and relaxed for the night.

Tuesdayimg_0183Started off the day with a cup of coffee in my favorite mug.

img_0186img_0188We then headed out for a 3 mile walk before it got too hot. These walks have seriously become my favorite fitness activity. I love getting outside, spending time with Chance, working on training, and listening to podcasts.

img_0190Apparently it was still too hot for Chance 😀

It’s hard to see, but Chance has a huge, round ice cube. Kyle put it in his water bowl to help him cool down, but Chance pulled it out and played with it haha

Kyle and I then headed to brunch at Wild Eggs! This is our FAVORITE breakfast place. I got the stuffed french toast with strawberries and blueberries and a cappuccino. YUM!

Both Chance and Kyle took a long nap when we got home while I worked on the blog.

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Snackin while I’m bloggin. I have to get my fresh fruit fix now because it’s going to be coming to an end soon. Sad face.

img_0208Once Kyle woke up, he made me a burger on a pretzel bun with pickles and creamy jalapeno sauce from Chuy’s. It was delicious!

Kyle and I started watching The Following, and I am obsessed now! He watched the first season in college but now there are three seasons and we have to binge watch them before they’re gone at the end of the month. There have been a couple of scenes that we’ve fast forwarded through due to nudity, and it definitely has it’s creepy parts so be cautious if you decide to watch it. Definitely not a show I will watch without Kyle!

img_0209img_0210We took Chance out for a mini walk and stayed up late watching more of our show.

Wednesday: Chance and I slept in until eight since we stayed up late helping Kyle switch back to nights. Then we headed out for a 3 mile walk!

It was so hot outside! My phone said it was 78 degrees outside but the humidity was 75%. I guess that’s better than the 90% we had yesterday! haha

img_0211img_0212img_0215It has been so beautiful outside. I keep saying this, but I love spending this time outside. It puts me in such a good mood.

img_0216I walked out the door without my fitbit so I just used the app on my phone. I love how easy to use and accurate my fitbit is.

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Strawberries and cashews have been my go to snack this week. The strawberries are refreshing and the cashews give me my salty fix. I worked on catching up on some blog ideas and emails.

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Then I made some coffee and spent some time on my SHE REFINED content for this month. We’re concentrating on our purpose, and it has been soooooo good. Right now, I’m working on going through the bible and finding verses specifically on purpose. Guess what. Not one of those verses said or even hinted at us needing to FIND our purpose. God created our purpose long before we were born. God calls us to love Him, love others, and make disciples. We do not need to find it. We just have to embrace it and live it.

Bad hair day=favorite new hat! PS I’m getting more excited every day to get my aligners! Yay!

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Then headed out to get my nails done! My first day on my new unit is tomorrow, so I am getting a ton done today so I don’t have to worry about it later. I’m bringing back warm, fall colors. FALL COME ON!

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I was gathering all of my stuff for my first day tomorrow and loved the way these colors went together. Nothing like a purple stethoscope and floral notebook to put me in a good mood! Find something “little” that brings you joy and be thankful for it today.

img_0226Around 1, I had my go to protein smoothie. It always give me the boost I need. I powered through some more things on the blog.

I stopped for a little snack- my weakness! This pineapple salsa is AMAZING.

Chance and I headed out on another 3 mile walk. I love this little dude.

I seriously can’t get over how beautiful these views are. No filters here people, and this is literally right around the corner from my apartment complex. You can find beauty anywhere if you just take the time to look.

I listened to another Girls Night podcast on our walk. This one was an interview with Jordan Lee Dooley, the woman who wrote the Bible study I’m doing right now. It was all about learning to not compare ourselves to others, and that is so important to me because I struggle with that so much! It also challenged me to stay off Facebook for awhile because it usually leaves me feeling insecure and like I’m not enough. That’s one of the big reasons I got off twitter and Instagram a while ago. I’ve loved the way I feel so much, I haven’t gotten them back yet. I’m also excited to see how much time I gain because I waste so much time scrolling through my timeline.

Dinner was mixed greens, cucumbers, grilled chicken that Kyle made for my dinners this week(how sweet!), and olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. It was so yummy!

Chance and I cleaned up and went to bed early. My first day on the unit was Thursday, and I wanted to get a full 8 hours of sleep. I read The Hate U Give until I fell asleep.

Thursday: Chance and I were up at 5:00 to get ready for the day.

img_0243 I did my morning yoga, had my smoothie, and took Chance on a walk. Yoga selfie feat. puppy feet.

I now get to wear any color scrubs at my new job, and I am WAY too excited about that. I used to wear royal blue every day, so I was excited to bring my fun colors out! Also, tight ponytails break my hair and give me migraines so I opt for side ponytails, buns, or braids. I have a lot of room for improvement in the hair area, but I thought this braid actually looked decent for my first day! Yay!

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On my way to work, I jammed to this song to pump me up for my first day!

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I am so thankful for this new job. I have so many positive feelings about this hospital, and I am so happy to be a part of it! I mean, my manager insisted on taking me to get a chai latte- how sweet is that? She really took the time to show me around and get to know me. God really provided. It definitely took time, and I had a lot of rough times at my last job, but God’s timing is perfect. If you’re in the waiting period, just hold on, listen to God, and He’ll pull you through!

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Apparently, they read my mind because we had Qdoba for lunch! I mainly had chicken, tomatoes, guac, a spoonful of queso, and a few tortilla chips. YUM

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Of course I needed coffee to carry me through the afternoon. I probably didn’t even need it because I was still so pumped up to be there, but alas, I drank it anyways. haha

After work, I headed to my mom’s work and waited for her to get off so we could go to dinner. I finished listening to Jordan Lee Dooley’s facebook live video while I waited. It was so good! Then we headed to pizza king and had our usual Hawaiian pizza and talked about life. Then I headed to bible study. I love Thursdays! Filled with so much goodness and fellowship.

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Once I got home, Chance and I headed out for a walk before heading to bed. Love night walks with my little dude. We then called it a night.

Friday: Woke up at 5:00, yoga, smoothie, walk, work. Creature of habit, remember?

This kid didn’t want me to get up and go to work. We got to spend Saturday-Wednesday together so he was used to having me around all day! He’s the best little cuddler.

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I didn’t sleep very well last night because Chance kept waking me up. He has nightmares sometimes and wakes up. Poor little guy! That meant I got to spoil myself with an almondmilk cappuccino. YES!

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I had a big salad with tomatoes, olives, and vinaigrette and a bowl of chicken gnocchi soup for lunch.

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On the ride home, I was listening to one of my playlists and this song came on. This song is so powerful and uplifting. Go listen to it! You won’t regret it.

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I get migraines around my time of the month because my hormones are going wack (TMI but there you go). Yay for being a girl. Anyways, lavender epsom salt baths really help relax my muscles and clear my hand. I suggest it to anyone who struggles with headaches or is just having a stressful week! I prefer Dr. Teal’s Lavender Epsom Salt Soothe and Sleep bubble bath. Regular epsom salt works great too!

Chance and I spent the rest of the night going on a walk, cuddling on the couch, listening to the rain, and watching the new season of Young and Hungry that’s on Nettflix. That show is my guilty pleasure. It’s so cute and hilarious.

Saturday and Sunday were all about celebrating Kyle’s birthday!

We headed to his parent’s house on Saturday for a party they were having. I obviously had to have a cappuccino on the way there.

We went to lunch and the colts game on Sunday for Kyle’s birthday! Yats and football are two of Kyle’s favorite things so it was a successful birthday. We headed home to spend some time with Chance before our friends came over to celebrate! I made a new cake so we’ll see how it is! I’ll post about that later 🙂

I hope you all have had an awesome weekend and have a great Monday 🙂

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