Thursday's Thoughts

I feel like I don't have enough time for everything going on, but like the rest of you, I try to squeeze every little drop out of my day.

And I've found recently that I'm happy.

More than just content. Truly, ecstatically happy.

There is nothing special that has happened to put me here. No big changes that have occurred. Just an overall feeling of happiness.

Maybe I've learned to let go a little bit & not stress the small things.

A little cat hair floating downstairs in the hallway? Sweep it out when we walk Hayden.

A pot of Gerbers that have molded & must be redone? Two pots of gorgeous marigolds (keep the bugs away!) & another pot of Gerbers that are rocking that porch!

It could be the weather we've had lately. Every morning on my way home from the gym I see people out in groups or with their dogs running.

Each evening I see couples strolling in the late sunshine, grateful for a respite to the day's heat.

I look at Mr. Potts and feel so loved each day. I think of my babies and smile. I think of friends we have whom I cherish more than anything.

Could it be a weekend getaway with a group of fabulous girls? Possibly!

Watermelon, strawberries, blackberries & peaches. All are calling my name. Summer squash, zucchini, red bell peppers & Silverqueen corn. So brilliantly colored & crisp.

I'm not sure what it is, but the old adage to "Stop & smell the roses"? I'm sniffing as deeply as my little pollen clogged nose will let me.

Which considering my allergy problem, may not be the best thing.

But I'm going for it.

Thursday's Thoughts? More like Thursday's Ramblings, but it's ok.

What's on your mind? What makes you happy?

We keep it KLASSY

As the weekend drew to a close yesterday, I realized how thankful I am that we don't have any more friends getting married.

Because weddings are fun, but people of a certain age (*cough* not 21 *cough*) don't bounce back as quickly (*cough* Mr. Potts *cough*).

A good time was had by all.

We attended the rehearsal & rehearsal dinner.


With our group of friends, shenanigans were to be had.


The wedding was nice and I was complimented on my reading - several people told me I should be on the radio - only if it pays like Ryan Seacrest!

After the wedding we had a few hours to kill.


So we headed back to a friend's hotel room.

Where we kept it KLASSY - as if there would be any doubt.


The bride and groom danced a few dances before we all took to the dance floor.


Congrats you two!!

Sunday was a beautiful day to spend with my mom and the munchkins in celebration of her.

Although in true Mrs. Potts' fashion I forgot her mother's day card. To which she told me she didn't need one any way & to save it for next year.

Wonder who I get my smart mouth from??

Hope all your weekends were as lovely as mine!

Fabulous Friday

Happy Friday Everyone! It's here - another edition of Fabulous Friday! A highlight of all things fabulous that I've stumbled across over the course of this week (in no particular order, of course!) or even fond memories I have stored in my brain.

I'm keeping this short this Friday. I'm running on a time crunch.

I gave my knee a rest this morning (self-diagnosed Runner's Knee - via Google) and slept in.

I'm reading in a wedding this weekend & let me tell you, the bride, well she is, (dare we?) a bridezilla.

So I jetted after work yesterday to get my hair done. This was a quick, "PLEASE FIT ME IN OR THE BRIDE WILL KILL ME!!" express job on my Kelly Bundy'esque root.

I'm leaving straight from work to rush home, freshen makeup, fluff le hair & head to the church for the rehearsal.

Wedding is tomorrow at 2pm which means I'll be hustling to get to the gym & then get ready for the wedding.

It is also a Catholic wedding which means I'll be famished - so I'll need a good lunch to tide me over.

So....

Today I'm sharing with you an excellent giveaway for a copy of Heather McDonald's book about Blue Balls.

Ashley at Kiwis & Cocktails clued me in on this lovely lady (shame on you Ashley for holding out!) & when I visited her blog, I had to begin following her.

Surferwife is funny, irreverent, dare I go on?

And she lives in a warm, sunny place.

Stop my heart.

So, go on over & give her a peak. I'm sure you'll like what you see!

Cinco de Bust

Our big plans this week included going to our favorite Mexican place near us & eating the following:

• Chips
• Salsa
• Queso
• Corn Salsa
• Carne Asada

Which I was SUPER excited about. To make ourselves feel a bit better about eating that, Mr. Potts & I walked to the restaurant & planned to walk home. You know, to help it settle.

I should have known we'd have a problem when I saw all the cars in the area.

I should have known we'd have a problem when I remembered that a popular Charlotte radio station was hosting a Cinco de Mayo bash.

We should have recognized the problem when two people who had just walked in turned around & walked out muttering about an hour and a half wait for a table.

Should have known, but thought we were ok because this was OUR place. We went when they first opened. We went when you couldn't drive down the street in front of them because of construction. We took large groups of people there. I mean, we should have a table with our name.

But obviously we don't.

So we put our name on the list, along with our phone number.

So we called our friends to advise of the situation & they came & picked us up.

Smart kids that we are, we decided to go to the other Mexican restaurant (same name, same owner) a few miles away & try there.

Cause, you know, the radio station wasn't there.

50 minute wait.

Ok, we'll head to the sketchy part of town & hit one of those tiny little Mexican places.

Line out the door.

I mean, did EVERYONE have the same idea we did?

Settled on a different restaurant where I had a steak sandwich.

Which didn't compare to the salsa, queso, corn salsa, chips & carne asada I was going to eat.

So we've decided we're going to celebrate Quatro de Mayo or Seis de Mayo next year. Because when the original Mexican restaurant we went to & put our name down at called us 2 hours and 20 minutes later, we were already finished with dinner & on our way home!

Motivation

Brown Eyed Girl sent me a text this morning talking about motivation & how hard it can be sometimes to stay motivated with exercise. I agree wholeheartedly and realize that many of us struggle with motivation. Perhaps not exercise related, but motivation in general.

For me, it is exercise/diet motivation.

Get up at 4:40am to get to the gym? Sometimes I'd rather sleep?

Healthy salads (like last night's with strawberries, chicken & goat cheese)? Sometimes I'd rather just have fried chicken.

What motivates me to keep making positive choices and positive changes in my exercise and eating?

Me.

I'm my own motivation. No one else is going to do it for me.

I want to fit into my clothes.

I want to run around with the munchkins, push them on a swing, throw them up in the air without getting winded.

I want to be healthy 10 years from now & not worrying about high blood pressure.

Exercise just makes me feel good. I love the feeling after a great workout. Not so much the hair maintenance, but that's a different story.

I like taking Hade Dog for a long walks & not getting shin splints.

I want to feel comfortable in a bikini on the lake.

I want to be ok with having my picture taken & not cringing at the results.

You see, I've made remarkable progress in the last 8 months. I've lost 20 pounds. For me, that is a big deal and something else that motivates me.

I carry extra weight in my face & my stomach, so part of it is vanity.

But I also have a family history (on both sides) of heart problems, cholesterol problems, high blood pressure, etc. In fact, my aunt was just in the hospital with one of her arteries 90% closed.

She's the healthiest of that side of the family - my dad's side where I have 2 Aunts, 1 Uncle & my dad.

I look back at old pictures and I know that we're often our own worst critics. I'm certainly my own.

But I'm working on that voice. I'm making changes so that when I look at pictures, I see how happy I am & how confident I feel.

To show you the difference.

This first pictures is from last year's Derby in KY. Now, granted, it was a nasty rain day, so my hair was a mess. Yet you can see it in my face. How bloated I was. If you watch The Biggest Loser, you'll see that in the Before/After pictures as well.



This year's Derby - here in CLT. What a difference a year makes.

Who knows what next year will bring!

Now, I've gone on about some of what motivates me. What motivates you?

I have visions

Not psychic visions, but this morning I had a great workout & on my way home started thinking about breakfast.

Usually I'll eat an english muffin with a little squeeze butter & honey.

But last night after work I went to the store & bought our groceries for the week.

**Sidenote**
We had blackened grouper filets last night. Mine with a sideof my fabulous 5 Bean Salad - will share the recipe soon.

Tonight we'll be feasting on a Southwest Salad with the creamy salsa dressing Brown Eyed Girl turned me on to.

Wednesday we're going to a local Mexican place for Cinco de Mayo. YUM!!!

Thursday we'll have a salad with goat cheese, strawberries, walnuts, chicken & a balsamic vinaigrette.

So I got all the groceries, including strawberries.

**Back to Story**

So, driving home from the gym I decided that instead of the normal muffin, I'd top it with finely diced strawberries.

Muffin + squeeze butter + honey + ripe strawberries is sure to = Fabulousness in my mouth!

Hope your breakfast will be yummy too!!

Derby Day Recap

Saturday was Mr. Potts & my Derby Day Bar Crawl & what fun we had!

We kicked everything off at our house with the Oaks Lily (see previous post for link to recipe) which was quite the hit!

I bought two bunches of Gerber Daisies & broke them into two vases. They turned out quite lovely.
Mr. Potts & I made quite the pair, don't you think? Y'all - I LOVED my hat!!

We had girls in hats.

We had boys in hats.
The end of the night came & my hat rested by the flowers. I'm saving this for the next time we go to Derby. I was so proud that I made this & pulled it off!! Don't you love the feathers?
Remember when I told you to bet the jockeys, not the horses? That's how I won big money last year on Mine that Bird.

I won the Derby pot this year too!

Love me some Calvin Borel!!!