Hi! How are you, my friends? And just like that we’re moving into the final weekend of October, oh my. This past week was pretty typical for me, but I did get out to catch the Warriors season opening game last night with a friend. This weekend, we’re going to a dinner party, then I’ll be working on preparing for my POP Pilates instructor training next week and hanging with my boys.

Let’s do the faves of the day …

Current faves

Fun

City adventures and a movie with Dave

This is a favorite, favorite. Dave and I left Brady for 24 hours, and it was a lot of fun! We went into the City for the day and night and hung out as adults, no changing diapers, no washing sippy cups and no adorable crazy-haired toddlers taking all of our attention.

We walked a lot (like 15,000 steps in one day, according to Dave’s Apple watch), had delicious food (my winter salad from Blue Barn that’s shown below was to-die-for), chatted, relaxed and even saw a movie in the middle of the day.

Speaking of the movie, we haven’t been to a movie since before Brady was born. Quite honestly, while I do like movies, I would never get a babysitter to come over and watch Brady just to go see one — they just aren’t a priority for me. But once Dave and I knew we were going to have a free afternoon together, we figured seeing a movie could be a great treat for us. There wasn’t anything playing that we were dying to see, so we chose an IMAX showing of “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil.”

We went into the movie knowing very little about the story and didn’t even find out it was a sequel until after seeing it (an example of how we are clearly out of the movie loop). However, it was SO good. The IMAX experience is a little jarring though, and although I’d been to several IMAX movies before, it seemed really loud to me this time — especially with all the action in this particular film.

We sat back in our chairs and did nothing but watch the movie for two full hours — and I seriously loved the escape of it. I didn’t check my phone, think about my work or think about anything other than what was happening on screen, and that is amazing. We both thought the movie was really entertaining, even though we hadn’t seen the first one. It had a lot of special effects and great acting, so I’d recommend it. Not for kids though!

Moving on, the rest of our City time was perfect. We went to a nice dinner at Wayfare Tavern (always a favorite), had some dessert from The Cheesecake Factory, stayed at the W Hotel in downtown, tried two new local coffee shops and fully enjoyed ourselves. We made it home mid-morning on Sunday, and Brady had clearly had a ball with his Auntie Gwena, so it was a win-win for everyone involved. 

This little adventure reminded us that we have to continue to make time just for us — even though we always want to include Brady and all his cuteness. Easier said than done for sure, but an important thing to think about.

Fashion

Animal print slip-ons

I’m in love with these shoes. I ordered them online last week and wore them in the City just a few days after they arrived. They are comfortable, very reasonably priced and of course, feature faux snake skin and faux leather — so what else could you ask for in a casual shoe? I might have to get them in additional patterns and colors.

Books

“Big Magic” by Elizabeth Gilbert

I’m not sure why I keep picking up books before knowing what they’re about, but I do. (Actually, I know why: When I go to the library, I always have an active companion who needs constant supervision with me, so it’s usually a grab-and-run situation.)

I reserved “Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear” at the library a couple weeks ago based off knowing the author alone, Elizabeth Gilbert. I had only read a fiction book from Gilbert before, but “Big Magic” is very much a non-fiction title all about the creative process.

It’s broken up into these sections: Courage, Enchantment, Permission, Persistence, Trust and Divinity. In each section, Gilbert shares a personal story from her career, as well as stories from other notable artists throughout history. She uses the stories to prove the point that oftentimes the creative process is not linear. And it’s certainly not always easy, with tons of rejection and failure along the way, as well as a lot of self doubt.

Perhaps one of the most significant things in the book to me was the idea that an idea “finds you.” And sometimes, if the timing isn’t right, the idea leaves you and finds someone else. This spoke to me. It really did.

I enjoyed this book, not because it has a strict beginning, middle and end (in fact, you could pick it up and read it from anywhere in text and get some valuable inspiration), but because it’s completely not like anything I’ve read before. It’s not about wellness, fitness, or self improvement even, it’s about giving yourself the ability to be creative, express yourself and know that no matter the outcome, your creative work is worth doing. She encourages curiosity above all else. And I think we can all stand to have a little more curiosity in our lives.

If you’re someone who needs a little kick to start a creative outlet or an artistic hobby, I’d recommend reading this book to help you get going. If you’re someone who likes straight-up fiction or structured books with actual how-to tips, then this book isn’t for you … but then again, maybe it’s just what you need to veer off course?

Speaking of the author, Elizabeth Gilbert, I’m still on the waiting list for her latest book “City of Girls” so hopefully that one will come in soon — it’s fiction.

Beauty

Beautycounter secret sale ends tonight

Woohoo! There has been a super short secret sale on all Beautycounter products for just a couple days this week, and it ends tonight (10/25). Enter the code YFT at checkout to get 10 percent off your order (this promo code is not advertised on the site), and this even applies to the Flawless in Five makeup set and the regimens, which are already discounted and are usually excluded from sales. Shop here if you want to take advantage of this rare deal, and send me an email if you need help picking out what’s right for you.

Fitness

Weekly workout recap

Here are my workouts from last week …

• Monday: Practiced BODYATTACK 30 minutes, 5 p.m.
• Tuesday: 30-minute CXWORX, 10 a.m., taught 45-minute BODYATTACK, 4:45 p.m.
• Wednesday: 45-minute SoulCycle, 8:30 a.m., taught 1-hour barre, 5 p.m.
• Thursday: Taught 1-hour barre, 12 p.m., practiced BODYATTACK 30 minutes, 5 p.m.
• Friday: 30-minute weights workout, 10 a.m. (shown below)
• Saturday: Rest day
• Sunday: Rest day

This past week of workouts was definitely light in the resistance training department — very light in fact. But I did switch it up with a SoulCycle class with a friend, and I took two full rest days over the weekend. I’m going to be back to more weights this week, but here’s the one solo weights session I completed this week. It was a good one …

You can find more workouts like this in my “workout” highlights tab on Instagram in my profile, or check out some inspiration in this post.

Best reads

A few things from around the web …

• Sweat. Did you know that some people are prone to sweating more than others based on their genetics? It’s true. Here are some more myths about sweating that you may want to know. Very interesting stuff.
• Supporting bloggers. I LOVE LOVE this post from Diane about how you can show support for the blogs that you read regularly. Blogging is a new-ish and funny business — that’s why hearing from readers, getting likes, shares and comments on posts and on social media really helps — never forget that. 
• Personal development. This is a topic I’d love to explore more, because it’s so important and not often discussed — what it means for others in your life when you’re on a path to improve yourself. This episode from the Rise Together podcast is all about how you can get your partner interested in personal development, if you’re into it — and how you should always surround yourself with people who lift you up, including other couple friends.

Here’s the quote of the week from my morning meditations …

A Lady Goes West favorite archives

• Barre. Because if you’re going to do a workout, you want to get the most you possibly can from it. Check out these tips and tricks … “How to make your next barre class more effective.”

• Lunches. An oldie but a goodie, here are some meal ideas for tasty and healthy lunches … “11 super simple healthy lunch ideas.”

Have a wonderful weekend! Thank YOU! 🙂

Questions of the day

What are you up to this weekend?

What was the last movie that you saw?

Have you listened to a great podcast episode lately worth sharing?

Did you get the third edition of the ALGW newsletter this week? It went out Wednesday. Sign up here to get the next one.

By the way, if you need a workout over the weekend, you can give Les Mills On Demand a try using my special referral link that provides you with 21 days for free. Just do it!