Wednesday, September 25, 2019

WHAT'S UP WEDNESDAY | SEPTEMBER

Happy Wednesday, friends!  Hard to believe we are just a few days away from October!  Doesn't it feel like it was JUST New Year's?  (No?  Just me?)  It's crazy to think we are just 3 months away from 2020!  I started thinking about that the other day and just couldn't believe it.  I swear the older I get the more time seems to just whiz right past me.

But I'm already getting off on a tangent so let me get back to what we're here for today.  It's another What's Up Wednesday with Shay and Sheaffer where we answer all sorts of questions about what we've been up to lately and what we're planning next month.  I love seeing what everyone else is up to so if you leave a comment here and you've also blogged WUW, please leave your link and I'll check it out!
It's been a jam-packed week because I'm out of here on Thursday morning and I'm trying to get everything done before I go.  Keep scrolling to read all about it!

WHAT WE'RE EATING

I know a lot of you found me after I jumped on board this Keto train and I'm here to tell you that it's still serving me well!  I've stopped and started a second Keto post at least a dozen times already and someday soon I'm hoping to get that posted but for now, you can check my big "How to get started on Keto" post HERE and check the Highlight bubbles in my Instagram profile for tons more Q&As and food ideas.

As for what we're eating around here, it's more of the same.  Baseball is in full swing so we tend to hit up the quick and easy dinners a lot more.

Like tacos.  Mason loves my tacos, y'all.  I feel like a 5 star chef when I make them for him because he loves nothing more.  One day, he'll realize that you really can't mess up tacos and they all taste pretty much the same.  But for now, I love that he thinks mine are the best. ;)


As far as Keto stuff goes, I've really been sticking the same stuff I've already told you about.  I love making club sandwiches with my zero net carb bread.  I order mine online and it's not cheap but to be able to eat a sandwich or toast like a normal person with none of the carbs is totally worth it to me.  I love the Honey version and I prefer to eat it toasted or grilled.  I rarely eat it plain.  Keto for me is all about learning to make adjustments and compromises where you can so you don't feel deprived of everything you love.  I also found the "plain" version of the bread in the freezer section at Market Street the other day!  (The bread needs to be frozen or refrigerated.)

And if you're new here and not sure about this whole Keto thing, feel free to ask questions!  I'm 4 months in and lost 20+ pounds in the first two.  I've been maintaining for the last two (although I'm down a few more as well.)  It has become a total lifestyle change that I honestly didn't see coming but I can't imagine ever simply forgetting about.  I definitely have cheat meals every once in a while, I don't track my food or use my app anymore but on most days I just eat like I did when I was all in.  I know approximately how many carbs are in my day-to-day food so I don't have to be as strict with the Keto app.

I still do intermittent fasting as much as I can but if I break my fast too early I don't sweat it.  Maintenance mode is just not as hard as I thought it would be.  I test with my Ketone strips every day too and sometimes I'm in ketosis and sometimes I'm not.  When I'm NOT and I haven't had a cheat meal, it's almost always because I haven't been eating enough fat.  So I up my fat a little more for the next day or two and I'm back in.  I highly recommend these strips if you're trying to do Keto.  They are cheap, super easy to use and really keep you on track.

WHAT I'M REMINISCING ABOUT

Ten years ago, this was my life.  I loved taking Matthew on little walks around our culdesac.  Life was so much simpler then as a full-time stay-at-home-mom to just one super easy kid.  We had it made.   

Image may contain: one or more people, people sitting, child and outdoor

Image may contain: one or more people, people sitting, child and outdoor

Image may contain: one or more people, people standing and outdoor

And then this little nugget joined us and life got even more fun!

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I am never not reminiscing about these two as babies, honestly.  It was my absolute favorite time in my life.  Now is fun too of course but in other ways.  And it's much more stressful.  I say it all the time but I'd give anything to be able to go back and do it all over again!

WHAT I'M LOVING

I bought these little CZ hoops on Amazon for under $13 a couple of months ago and I am obsessed with them.  I wear them all.the.time.  I've worn them in the pool, in the shower, to sleep...and I NEVER wear earrings to bed.  But these are so comfortable that I don't even feel them and they haven't tarnished a single bit.  They are the perfect "everyday" type earring for those of us who feel naked without earrings.


When I don't feel like being sparkly, I just flip them around and fasten them in the other way so that the sparkly side is facing backward and all you see is the smooth, shiny gold side.  (I have them in the gold but they also come in silver and rose gold.)


These little hoops are one of my favorite Amazon purchases of 2019!

WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO

All the baseball...


(favorite ballpark jeans HERE)

...some football...



...and band!  Matthew is loving band and I'm already amazed at how much he has taken to it.  I didn't grow up in a musical family so this is all new to me but I'd love it if he found a passion for it.


We went to a band meeting the other night and he was so proud to show off the band room, where they keep their things and stuff like that.

After the meeting, we had snowcones outside in the parking lot.  (Which I felt I needed to say to explain away his red teeth.  Haha)



WHAT I'M WORKING ON

Eeeeek!! I finally added my latest creative obsession to my Etsy shop!  Y'all. I am head over heels for these cork and leather earrings.  I cannot even tell you.  So last month I got it in my head that I wanted to learn how to make leather earrings.  I thought I already had the machine you use to make them, so why not?  I love them so much and wear them all the time.  Why not make my own and put them in the shop?  Well, long story short, it was NOT that simple.  After an expensive trial and error process with new equipment being purchased as well as trying out many different types of leather, leather suppliers, and earring findings (the wires and jump rings), I FINALLY felt like I found what I wanted to go with.

If you aren't aware, not all leather earrings are created equal.  There are a ton of different leathers.  Faux leathers, double-sided leathers, genuine leather, fishtail leather, cork and my favorite--cork ON leather.  This means you get the look of cork, which is thicker and more substantial than leather while still being super light-but the back of it is a smooth tan leather which keeps it from curling and finishes it off so nice.

I love it so much so I've decided to focus mainly on that material for my earrings.  So, if you're wanting to check out what all I have (and am getting new patterns in weekly!) then head HERE to check it all out.  But here are a few of my favorites!

(Apologizing in advance for alllll the pictures.)









I wanted to see if I could show you a side shot of this cork on leather style so you could see the thickness.




These are one of my favorite pairs!  I love the black and tan with flecks of gold.


Basic orange for your fall wardrobe!


And so much more!







Prices start at $9 and go up to $15 for layered ones.  Super reasonable and shipping is just a few dollars.  (Local peeps: Message me for the porch pickup code!)

But I'm not only working on earrings.  I've also sent out some super cute insulated wine tumblers like this one.


And you can add on a cute fall design to any tumbler in the shop!

(Sidenote:  My nail polish is another favorite and you can find it HERE and HERE.  I love the metallic bronze and it has stayed on through a LOT this past week!  I topped it with a coat of the Essie gel top coat.)

You can check out my full shop HERE.

WHAT I'M EXCITED ABOUT

Oh my gosh, we have so much fun stuff coming up!! I don't even know where to begin!

So tomorrow, I'm leaving my 3 guys behind and driving 4 hours to Natchitoches, LA where I went to college at Northwestern State University.  This is why my week has been so stressful!  I had to get all orders that were scheduled to go out this week done by yesterday so that I could have today free and could leave tomorrow.

I mentioned on last week's Friday Favorites that I was going to be judging the Miss Northwestern Lady of the Bracelet pageant this Friday.  I was Miss Northwestern 2002 and they wanted a former L.O.B. to be a judge.  I am THRILLED to do this, y'all!!  It's going to be so much fun!  The winner of the pageant will go on to compete at Miss Louisiana (like I did...such a crazy experience!) but y'all.  I have been looking over the contestants' packets that they sent to the judges this week and one of the girls was born the same month that I was crowned!!  Now THAT makes me feel so dang old.  😂😂

This was the only picture I could find on the internet of my time spent as Miss Northwestern. This picture is awful!  It was taken about 10 minutes after I was crowned and whoever crowned me didn't even do it right so my crown is all crooked!  And no one told me! Honestly, you think SOMEONE would have noticed, right?  But you can see my new accessory!  The Lady of the Bracelet really does wear a bracelet!  It's a gold bracelet with charms engraved with each L.O.B.'s name and year.  Not my favorite thing to wear but it was a very cool thing to get to wear to official appearances throughout the year.  

I promise to dig out all my old (in color) pageant pics to add to my post when I recap my weekend but this is the best I have right now.


Craig and the boys have baseball stuff that they can't miss this weekend but my parents are driving down, as well as my best friend from college.  I get to meet her new baby girl which makes me so happy.  There's also a home football game the next day so we'll stay for that as well.  And I know I've mentioned this before, but Natchitoches, LA is where they filmed Steel Magnolias all those years ago.  It is the sweetest town and I absolutely love going back.

I very rarely leave all the boys home alone so I'm a little nervous that children won't get fed, homework won't get done and bedtime will be hours later than normal but I'm trying to let that go and just have some fun.  But before that, I have to squeeze in 5 days worth of Etsy orders into 2 days which thankfully, I was able to do.  Today, I'll be out and about running last-minute errands and looking for a dress to wear for the pageant.  The one I ordered didn't work out so now I'm back to square 1...with 1 day to find something. #help

So what else are we excited for???  Well...the Packers are in town again next weekend!!  Which happens to be my birthday weekend!!  (October 5 is my birthday.) You may remember me blogging about our Packers/Cowboys weekend 2 years ago.  Since Craig is a local Packers alumni he got to attend some fun fan events and I got to tag along.  (And I managed to score a pic with Clay Matthews which was probably the first time I've ever been star-struck with an NFL guy.  😂)


But this time, Craig is doing an alumni gig the day before the game so we decided to bring the boys!  This will be their very first NFL game and they are so excited.

And then the NEXT weekend, my parents are coming in town to watch the boys while Craig and I travel to Green Bay for Monday Night Football!  Craig has two events that he'll be attending as a Packers alumni that weekend and then we'll (obviously) stay for the game before we head home.  You may remember us doing this last year and the drama that surrounded it with that awful stomach bug! It's funny when I think about it now but at the time, it really really wasn't!  Thankfully, it hit Craig during the perfect time when we'd already attended the gala the night before and the game wasn't until the next day.  Whew.

PS:  This dress is my backup dress for the pageant in case I can't find anything better.



 (You can read about our weekend HERE.)  But even with that, we managed to have the best time.  Here's hoping we make it there and back with no one puking though. ;)

WHAT I'M WATCHING/READING

Oh my gosh!!! I just finished bingeing Downton Abbey and when I say bingeing I mean it in every sense of the word.  I started it last Sunday afternoon and by yesterday afternoon (9 days later), I had watched all 6 seasons. And it was SO SO SO GOOD!!!  The finale was perfection and I was so happy when they stopped killing off the characters I loved!  If you haven't watched this yet, do yourself a favor and watch!  It took me until Season 3 until I was absolutely hooked but even before that it was still good.



As for what I've been reading, I don't even remember right now.  😂 My whole world has been Downton Abbey for the past week.  I even remember that I was speaking in a British accent in my dream the other night!  #havemercy But I will have a book review for your next week most likely.  I know I've got at least a few to review!  ;)

And that's all for September's What's Up Wednesday!  If you'd like to follow along with me this weekend, be sure to find me on Instagram @amandanall and you can also find my Etsy shop @thatinspiredchickAnd for the best Daily Deals and adorable fall finds...everything from clothes, to home decor, to random stuff you never knew you needed...join my Facebook Group HERE!  

Have a great day, friends!


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5 comments

  1. Girl! You have some FUN up ahead! Can't wait to hear all about your weekend!

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  2. Friend! I'm ordering earrings TODAY!!! They are so stinkin' cute!!! (So are the baby pics you posted!!)

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  3. Happy almost birthday to my birthday twin!!! I hope your trip to Green Bay is much more uneventful this time.

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  4. I'm about to start watching Downton Abbey Season 6 but I might need to re-watch some of it because I don't remember what happened previously. Boo. What a fun show to binge in 9 days though. That's impressive!

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  5. My middle son is watching Downton Abbey right now since I mentioned I needed someone to go see the movie with!

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