What’s Up Wednesday {Jan 2016}

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Today I’m linking up with Shay, Mel & Sheaffer for this months What’s Up Wednesday!  The questions are in green so check it out and join the fun. 

{WHAT WE’RE EATING THIS WEEK}

I’ve totally been working on healthy eating this month with lots more protein, less carbs and healthy fat.  I try to follow a mix of 40% Carbs, 30% Protein and 30% Fat (primarily from healthy sources).  My main focus has been limiting “bad” carbs and sugar from my diet so while I’m still having Ezekiel bread here and there for snacks I’ve definitely stopped eating my fave chips and hot sauce anytime I want.  It was harder after turning 40 but let me tell you after turning 45 I seriously can only get belly fat off by following a plan like this.  No amount of exercise will take it off of me if I don’t eat a healthy mix and limit sugar.

I made these “nachos” Tuesday night and they were so yummy.  Nachos are one of my favorite things to make so I used mini bell peppers stuffed with taco meat (ground chicken) and topped with a little 2% cheese and my favorite toppings.   This was super satisfying.

***If you are visiting from Erika’s blog here is the Pork Chop Crockpot Recipe***
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pkg brown gravy mix
1 can chicken broth
1 pkg dry onion soup mix
Stir together
Add 4-5 pork chops (I use boneless because typically with bone in they fall apart)
Cook on low 5-6 hours
Serve over brown rice

{WHAT I’M REMINISCING ABOUT}

For the past 3 years college baseball has ruled my life.   I would be lying if I said I wasn’t feeling a little sad as I begin seeing all the hype knowing we will not be heading to Fort Worth every weekend.

{WHAT I’M LOVING}

 Watching this kid play basketball!  He has gained some confidence on the floor and it has been so fun to watch.  I have been so consumed with baseball for so long that I forgot how much I love to watch a good basketball game!  

{WHAT WE’VE BEEN UP TO}

It has been fairly normal and routine around here…..dance, basketball, work.  Oh…and I’m getting up at the ass crack of dawn.  🙂  Working on a little night owl conversion you can read about why here.  

{WHAT I’M DREADING}

If you stopped by the blog this week then you probably already know we will be saying goodbye to a loved one this week.  It is always hard to say goodbye but I’m especially anxious about this funeral as I know how heartbreaking it will be to see this young wife and four little girls say goodbye to their favorite guy.  Please keep the Taylor girls in your prayers!  

{WHAT I’M WORKING ON}

My mom turned 70 last month and for Christmas I gifted her a family photo shoot.  I really want great pictures of her with my brother and I and all the grandchildren.  Really great pictures!  So I’m working on pulling together outfits right now.  
I want everyone to be comfortable and feel good in what they are wearing.  I think she is going to wear her favorite jeans, boots, cream sweater and leopard scarf.  With that combo I think if the rest of us stay with warm neutrals like browns, grey, black and even olive it will work out well.  The pictures will be outside so I’ve got my fingers crossed for great weather!  This is a one shot deal since getting everyone together pretty much takes an act of congress.  

{WHAT I’M EXCITED ABOUT}

I love adding little touches around my house for holidays and Valentines day is no exception!  
I found these pillows 50% at Kohls and was super excited to add to our bed.  Every night as Keith gets ready to get into bed he calls it the “great pillow migration” moving everything out of his way.  
I was not able to find the Live Happy pillow online but the LOVE Pillow was available.  

{WHAT I’M WATCHING/READING}

Y’all….Keith and I are STILL watching Friday Night Lights!  We are almost through season 4 and just one more to go.  I’m not going to lie, I’m now understanding the whole #teamriggins craze! However, the relationship between Eric & Tami Taylor has so reminded me of Keith & me and goodness I just think he’s so good looking.  

I mean really….doesn’t he kind of look like my husband?  I keep asking Keith if he thinks it’s too late for him to go back to school to become a coach.  🙂

I’m struggling with reading right now to be perfectly honest.  I am currently reading two books and I just..cannot..stay focused on either one.

This book is sooooo great…almost too great!  It deserves my full attention and I was able to make it through quite a bit in November but then the holidays hit and I just haven’t been able to get back to it.  This is a book you have to focus on and I’ve been highlighting like crazy because I know I will want to flip back through and take some notes.  There are definitely some aha moments in this book!
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead

I have been the most disappointed in this book so far.  I mean I loved DJ Tanner and I love Candace in interviews, etc but this book is just not reeling me in at all.  I’m not quite halfway through so I’m trying to stay positive.
Balancing It All: My Story of Juggling Priorities and Purpose

I have two books, Winter Street and Still Alice, that I am dying to bust into but I will not let myself until at least one of these is complete!!  

{WHAT I’M LISTENING TO}

While everyone else is listening to Spotify and Pandora, I’m still creating playlist and buying (yep really buying) music on iTunes.  We all received a bunch of iTunes cards for Christmas and a grabbed a few new favorites.  I created a playlist titled My God Fix and it is full of all my old and new Christian favorites.  My very favorite right now is Come as You Are with My Story being a close second.  I use to be so intimidated by Christian music and that seems so crazy to me now.  It totally calms my spirit no matter what is going on.  

{WHAT I’M WEARING}

Lots of layering with my vests lately!  I finally figured out a few ways to wear my {herringbone vest} that work for me which was great since it has been sitting in my closet since November!

 Scarfs can just totally change an outfit and give it new life.  I just love them for any season but fall and winter they are definitely my favorite.  My blanket scarf on the right shows how much less bulky it looks after I cut it in half compared to the picture below on the left.  I’ve worn it more since cutting it in half than I probably wore it the last 2 years!

Pattern mixing has definitely become one of my favorite things!  Plaid & stripes?  Yep you can do that!  I really never even thought about leopard and stripes but, hey, look how easy it pairs together!  I pulled out all the stops in exhibit three with a plaid, herringbone, leopard combo.  Don’t be afraid to try different combinations.  It will not always work and you have to be conscious of the size of of the patterns playing together but once you find a great combo you will know immediately!
Black & White Stripes
Follow along with all my daily outfit inspiration on Instagram.  

{WHAT I’M DOING THIS WEEKEND}

We don’t really have anything planned this weekend which is always a nice feeling.  I would like to pull my Valentines Day items out and add a few touches here and there.  If I could find the time to scrapbook all my Christmas cards I would feel super productive but I’m not sure that will happen!  Here is a little sneak peek of some of my favorite things to decorate with.  

{WHAT I’M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH}

As much as I love watching Dillon play basketball, I have to say I’m looking forward to 6:30am practices coming to an end.  He doesn’t run track so we will be back to a “regular” morning schedule of the remainder of the school year!  

{WHAT ELSE IS NEW}

Some of you may know my friend Katy and I host a monthly linkup, Queen Bees, where we honor a woman who has inspired us.   We know so many of you have women to honor in your lives but you just may need a little prompting for a blogpost.  We decided to plan a little guide for the year to help you identify those special ladies.  By all means link up any post you have old or new but if you are looking for inspiration we hope this helps!  Please let us know if you have any questions at all!  To see all prior Queen Bees post visit here.  

{Bonus Question:  Favorite Valentine Treat}

Chocolate covered strawberries for sure!  So simple and so delicious!  
So that’s what’s up with me!  What’s up with you??  
Visit my contact page here for all the fun linkups I’m joining during the week.  

55 Comments

  1. I'm so glad you gave us this little guide for the link up!!! Yay!!! And could you post/share a typical day of what you eat. I am just overwhelmed with it all, count calories, take out this, eat this…any help would be so appreciated!!! Have a great Wednesday !!!

    Reply

  3. The great pillow migration! That's awesome! I think my husband feels the same way about our bed. 🙂 Takes me back to the scene in What About Polly where they demolish all of the decorative pillows! Ha! Enjoy your week!

    Reply

  5. Yay to sweet decor, love those pillows!! Oh the focus and reading!! I am missing my inner bookworm right now!! So with ya about school practices and a more normal routine. Cute as a button outfits, you are a scarf guru, looking fab!! Here's to FNL and the Taylors!! I've watched the whole series twice!!! Can you tell we love football bout as much as y'all down south, lol!! Have a wonderful day my beautiful friend!

    Reply

  6. LOVE the Valentine pillows! I have a Kohl's coupon burning a hole in my In Box – I just might have to stop by and see what they have! I'll definitely keep you guys in my prayers. I know the next two days will be incredibly hard. Sadly, not as hard as the lifetime ahead for the girls. So.very.heartbreaking.

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  7. Love those pillows. I just started watching Friday Night Lights, I'm still on season one. So good tho!! I can see why everyone loved it.

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  8. Oh hey…we have the same favorite Valentine's treat. Those are the best for sure! I hear you on not having time to read. I am struggling with that too. Blogging has definitely taken away a lot of my reading time. I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your loved one. All the best to you and your friends in this difficult time!
    Gina || On the Daily Express

    Reply

  9. I love those pillows! They are really cute! I also enjoy seeing what you are wearing and how you style it! I am definitely getting more comfortable with pattern mixing. I agree with you on the Christian music; its almost all I listen too lately. My new favorite artist is Lauren Daigle; her voice is soothing like Adele's.

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  10. Oh those pillows are so cute.

    The 40/30/30 is what I try to keep my macros balance at. It is so hard, right?! I am usually fine in the fat department but the carbs are the killer. Especially when you LOVE carbs like I do. Today is a wash and I'm not even trying it's the hubbies birthday and I have worked to hard to not enjoy some of it too ;).

    Your mom is adorable.

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  12. Ahhh….so much of this speaks to my heart! Friday Night Lights, the nachos, vests and scarves…..love, love, LOVE!!

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  13. Your food pics all look wonderful and tasty, even for this Carb Queen! And I've always thought that Keith looked like Coach Taylor. We're not as far along in the series, though. I think we're on season 2. Tell your mother I said that she can never go wrong with leopard!

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  16. Can I come to your house for dinner?? You're meals!!! Obsessed with Friday Night Lights – I flew through it in the fall and might rewatch again!

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  18. Always fun to catch up on your life happenings this way. Keep up the good work in the heathy eating. Wait till you hit 50…things really change. So keep up the good habits now.

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  29. You definitely have to celebrate and indulge sometimes! We had lots of carbs and sweets at a family gathering yesterday and I way overindulged. Cupcakes with homemade icing..oh my…AND peach cobbler. Eek! I feel so ick today but it was all delish. Hope you guys had a fun time celebrating! Have a super weekend.

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  34. So much goodness all in one post!! Those meals look amazing and your outfits inspire me as always! Hooray for your son's growing confidence on the court, and for another sport for you to enjoy cheering at! 🙂 I'll be praying for that precious family during this difficult time. Enjoy choosing those photo shoot outfits — if anyone can do an excellent job on that, it's YOU! 😉
    xo – Brenda // ChattingOverChocolate.com

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  35. I love all your cute layered vest and scarf looks! I need to get some Valentine's Day decorations up too but I'm not sure that will happen 🙂 Also, my mouth is watering over those "nachos" they sound so good and healthy too!!

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  36. Ah I live everything here- I don't know where to start! The food looks ah-mazing, Coach T is 100% gorgeous and makes me want to rewatch FNL asap! Hope yall have a fabulous weekend!

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  37. I too am getting better acquainted with pattern mixing. They used to terrify me but I decided that 2016 would be the year I try something new, at least once, and unexpected pairings (be they print or colour) are things I'm really exploring now so thank you for the inspiration. I'm also just falling in love with blanket scarves too. Being very short (5ft), they can get a little chunky but I would never have thought to cut them in half 🙂

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  41. Coach Taylor is the reason to watch the show 🙂 I'm currently reading Daring Greatly and it is amazing it is just taking a lot of my time. It's not a quick read but it's good. Have a great weekend!

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  43. All your meals look so good!! I have been doing Whole30 and it makes such a huge difference on how I look and feel. I know that this is the way I have to eat and I am hoping I can stay on track this time. Fun post!

    Thank you for being a part of TBT Fashion link up and hope to see you soon!

    Alice

    http://www.happinessatmidlife.com

    Reply

  46. I love these type posts! your "nachos" look great – I need to try the pepper route, as I've been making sweet potato chips for my base and this looks way easier. 🙂 Hmmm, I need to check out Friday Night Lights – I've heard good things in the past. And I am in lust with your leopard coat – So Fabulous!!!

    Reply

  50. Learning to see my closet in a different way has totally expanded my wardrobe tenfold. I took small risk at first and overtime it became easier and easier to figure out combinations. Still lots of trial and error though. Have a super weekend!

    Reply

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