Hi, friend! How are you? I’m doing fine.

It was an okay week over here, and it was a hot one. This week, I worked, taught all my usual classes, played some tennis, took Rudy to the vet and to the groomer and did the regular mom-life stuff. Shout-out to the convenience of Target drive-up for making it easy for me to grab the essentials we needed this week, as well as shout-out to my mom for doing all our grocery shopping, when I couldn’t fit it in. (Sometimes I can’t get everything done, and I’m thankful to have some help these days.)

This weekend, Dave and I are going to a baseball game, we have Brady’s early Saturday morning soccer game, I have brunch with some girlfriends, we’re having a couple of friends over for pizza, and we’re going to celebrate Mother’s Day — our first one with my mom as a Charlotte resident — so it’ll be busy and full. I also need to put together an hour of Barbell Strength for next week and get to work on some upcoming sponsored projects for A Lady Goes West, which you’ll get to see soon.

That’s enough chat! Let’s get right to the current faves of the day, and we’re keeping it short and sweet today …

Current faves

Fun

Enjoying a Kentucky Derby party with friends

This was a blast!

Last weekend, we went to a Kentucky Derby party at a friends’ house, and we all had so much fun. Brady loved playing with his neighborhood buddies in a bounce house and running around in the grass. And Dave and I enjoyed chatting with our friends and enjoying some good food and drinks. We didn’t actually spend all that much time together, because we were each off with our groups, though, but that often happens.

We hadn’t been to a Kentucky Derby party in so many years, and this was a beautiful day and a good line-up of friends to do it with. And it was totally family friendly, which is always a bonus.

To the party, I wore an older dress and borrowed a fascinator from the hostess, but I did pick up these new wedges for the occasion, and they were super comfy. I can see myself wearing them all summer, because the heel isn’t too high, and the little straps dress them up a bit. I actually got the wedges the night before the party in a last-minute shopping trip, and I’m so glad I did.

(Here are my new wedges.)

Oh and the best part? While we didn’t choose the winning horse, we did choose the second-place horse, so we won $18. We put in $10 on the bets, so we came out with $8 of earnings. Yay!

Little delights

A few things that made me smile this week 

This delicious Harmless Harvest coconut water drink with a chocolate flavor is oh-so-pleasing and hydrating. Whenever I find this on sale, I grab it. This past week, Sprouts had them on sale, so I picked up one for Dave and for me.

Last week was Teacher Appreciation Week in most schools, and knowing that, a couple of my cute class members brought me a gift as one of their favorite teachers at the gym. A bottle of wine is always a welcome gift for a group fitness instructor.

This is one of my favorite tennis tops, and a few months ago, I got pen all over the front of the shirt. I put it in the back of my drawer and thought about throwing it out, because none of my usual stain-removing methods worked. But then, last week, I ordered some ink remover from Amazon, and it totally got rid of the ink! I had no idea there was such a thing, and I’m so happy I know that now. I got all the pen marks out of the shirt and it was back in action on me this week in a tennis clinic. A real little delight of the week.

That’s it for the faves. Let’s get to the movement …

Workouts

My workouts from last week

Now it’s time to take a look at my workouts from last week.

I share this recap to show you how I try to get diversity of movement in my week, and how I always take a rest day (almost always). But remember, I do a little bit more than the average person, because I’m a group fitness instructor, so you don’t need to compare your movement to mine.

Workouts from the week of 5/1

• Monday: Taught 1-hour barbell class, 9:45 a.m.
• Tuesday: Taught 1-hour barre class with light weights, 9:30 a.m., took 90-minute tennis clinic, 11 a.m.
• Wednesday: Did 45-minute full-body weights at gym, 9:30 a.m., taught 45-minute barre class with light weights, 5:30 p.m.
• Thursday: Taught 45-minute combo class, 9:45 a.m.
• Friday: Taught 45-minute barre class with light weights, 10:30 a.m., taught 45-minute barbell class, 11:30 a.m.
• Saturday: Took 50-minute barre class, 9:45 a.m.
• Sunday: (Active recovery day) Played 30 minutes of tennis, 10:30 a.m.

This past week was a solid one for movement. I taught six classes, did a solo weights workout on the fitness floor, took one tennis clinic, played tennis for fun one time (which was a very light day and counts as my active recovery day), and I even took a barre class at a studio near Uptown. I loved the variety in this week.

Here’s a look at my solo weights workout on the fitness floor, similar to the previous week, just a little heavier on the weighted portion …

Best read of the week

Here’s an article worth sharing with you …

Sleep red flags. I’ll never tire of talking about sleep. (Horrible pun.) But really, unless you have young children or young puppies waking you up at night, hopefully you understand the importance of getting proper shut-eye for your health and life — and hopefully you’re doing all you can to get it. This is a short article with two things you need to watch out for that could be a sign you need to work on your sleep. The first? Trying to catch up on sleep over the weekends — sounds good, but you shouldn’t need it.

Quote of the week

Here’s a thought from Headspace worth sharing with you …

Blog archives of the week

Let’s look back at two posts worth revisiting, including the latest from earlier this week …

Local food finds. In this one, I’m sharing the places I eat most frequently for lunch, what I get, why I get it and which restaurants from the Bay Area I wish would open here in South Charlotte … “The five best healthy lunch restaurants in South Charlotte.”

Mother’s Day gifts.  Mother’s Day is this weekend! I love to put together gift guides, and if you’re shopping for a mom, or you’re a mom who wants to share some gift hints with someone, check this out for some last-minute ideas … “The best Mother’s Day gifts for 2023.”

Thanks for coming by the blog today, friend! Have a great day!

And to all the current moms, future moms, hoping-to-be moms and mom-like figures out there, I’m sending you some extra love for all you do and will continue to do for your current and future families. 🙂 xoxo

Questions of the day for you

How was your week?

What’s one fun thing you’re looking forward to soon?