Hi, my friends! How are you? What’s new? I hope you’ve had a great week.

My week was okay. I’m happy to report that it was a little less crazy busy than the last few weeks have been. I finished filming all the workout videos for the project I’m working on, and I should be able to share it with you in about three weeks or so. Yay!

This week, I took Brady to the pediatric dentist to get his tiny teeth cleaned, and the rest of the time, we stayed inside the house as much as possible, because it was H-O-T here in the East Bay, and the air quality was bad from nearby fires. Sadly, no walks and no park trips.

(Wearing Carbon38 leggings and a CALIA top.)

Next week, we head off on our little road-trip to Tahoe. We can’t wait to have a change of scenery. I haven’t gone out of town since Thanksgiving of last year, when we went to Atlanta to see my family. Wow — that’s a long home-bound stretch for me, especially after taking a lot of trips the last couple of years.

I’ll be checking in early next week with a blog post, then taking the rest of the week off. So you can expect one new post on A Lady Goes West on Tuesday. But I’ll be over on Instagram throughout our trip with some stories, I’m sure.

And today, it’s all about the faves …

Current faves

Food

New Daily Harvest Peach & Almond bites

*I’m a Daily Harvest ambassador, and although I do receive my shipments complimentary, this isn’t sponsored. These are affiliate links for my personal referral to the service.

You know I love my Daily Harvest, and here’s the latest from the healthy frozen food delivery brand … Peach & Almond bites.

As usual, these bites are full of only the best ingredients, and they are filling and tasty. They taste like a peach cobbler, in a dense and hearty bite. 

I like to have two as a snack before teaching a virtual class. But I’ve also had them for a quick breakfast. You just pull them out of the freezer for a couple minutes before eating, so they soften up, then enjoy in one bite or two.

These bites contain peach, almond, oats, apple, cinnamon and even probiotics, and that’s pretty much it. Nothing funky, no fillers and a great flavor. I would definitely recommend them, although I think the Cacao & Avocado bites from Daily Harvest are still my favorite of the bites.

By the way, Daily Harvest also has smoothies, flatbreads, lattes, snacks and even a healthy dairy-free ice cream — all of which is delivered to your doorstep in a chilled box. All you do is pop it all in the freezer, and choose which one you want when you’re ready for some healthy food. Daily Harvest items are not cheap, that’s for sure, but they are convenient, nutritious and high quality.

Check out Daily Harvest here. And use my code, ALADYGOESWEST, for $25 off your first order.

Almond and fig butter sandwiches

I went to Trader Joe’s a few weeks ago and picked up a few new-to-me items, and one of them was this jar of fig butter. I envisioned using it on an almond butter sandwich, and my idea was clearly a good one. 

Both Dave and I have had a few almond-and-fig-butter sandwiches lately, and it’s such a tasty combination. The fig butter is actually a fig jam, not butter, and there are only a few ingredients. And yes, it tastes just like figs.

On the sandwich, I’ve been using Trader Joe’s creamy raw almond butter (I actually prefer the crunchy, but Brady prefers creamy, so I had some of the creamy on hand), and I put it all on sprouted whole wheat bread. I toast the bread, slather on a healthy layer of both the almond and fig butter and dig in. 

Long-time blog readers know I used to have a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich obsession, and I ate them every single day for lunch for years. I’ve branched out to include more veggies and produce in my lunches, but I do like coming back to this tried-and-true meal here and there. Yum.

Entertainment

“Schitt’s Creek”

I had so many people tell me to watch “Schitt’s Creek” for so long.

And finally, Dave and I were ready to start a new show a few weeks ago, so we gave it a try. To be honest, I wasn’t sold on the first two episodes. I didn’t get it. I wasn’t impressed. But Dave saw a glimmer of hope, so we pressed on. And then starting at episode three, I got it. All of a sudden I loved it. And by season two, I was completely obsessed. 

“Schitt’s Creek” is about a quirky super-rich family that loses it all and ends up living in a motel in a tiny town (Schitt’s Creek) full of strange personalities. Hilarity ensues.

(Image source: Netflix.)

There are currently five seasons of the show on Netflix, and we watched them all in a matter of weeks.

What I really like is that the “Schitt’s Creek” episodes are only about 20 minutes, and they are so darn funny. And unlike some comedies, every episode builds on the storyline that we’ve seen developing throughout the seasons.

Clearly, “Schitt’s Creek” is a comedy, but it’s also very sweet at times, about family, friendships and love too. And the cast and production is made up of the Levy family, including dad (Eugene Levy), son (Daniel Levy) and daughter (Sarah Levy), with a couple more recognizable stars, like the mom from the “Home Alone” movies (Catherine O’Hara). Also, side note: The show and the actors have won tons of awards for this work, so we’re not the only ones who appreciate it.

If you watch this show, you’ll totally start to fall in love with the characters. I sure did. David is my favorite, by the way. His facial expressions are unmatched, as well as his catchphrases.

There’s a sixth and final season of the show that is supposed to hit Netflix in October, and we look forward to watching it as soon as it lands there.

Beauty

Free gift with regimen purchase

Another Beautycounter deal coming your way …

Sunday is the last day to get a free full-size Brightening Oil with any Beautycounter regimen purchase (a regimen is a skincare set, with products designed to work together).

I happen to love the Brightening Oil, and I use it most days of the week. It’s hydrating, but it also improves skin discoloration. It’s a perfect daily moisturizer for the hot summer days, so I put it on in the morning or mix it with my nighttime moisturizer at night. And it smells really good too.

Check out the regimens here. And as always, reach out if you need some help. I’d love to assist. Also, next week, we have a BIG product launch, and it’s … deodorant. Woohoo!

Workouts

Weekly workouts 

Here are my workouts from last week …

• Monday: 20-minute Les Mills GRIT Strength via Les Mills On Demand, 5 p.m.
• Tuesday: Taught 45-minute barre, 12 p.m., 20-minute cycle, 6 p.m.
• Wednesday: 45-minute weights circuit, 1 p.m.
• Thursday: Taught 45-minute barre, 12 p.m., 15-minute cycle, 6 p.m.
• Friday: 30-minute barre, 11 a.m., 20-minute weights circuit, 5 p.m.
• Saturday: 30-minute weights circuit, 11 a.m., 15-minute cycle, 6 p.m.
• Sunday: 20-minute light yoga flow, 5 p.m.

This past week of workouts was a good one, very similar to the last couple of weeks. I took a day off (with light yoga), lifted weights, did some rides and some barre too. My workouts feel great right now, and I’m fine with them. Wow, I never thought I would say that about working out at home … but we adapt.

Discounts 

A few A Lady Goes West recommended products

You guys know I only share what I love, so here are some of the brands I recommend …

• Carbon38. The coolest activewear around. Get 15 percent off your first two orders of $100 or more using the code ASHLEYPITT. 
• G2G protein bars. I love these tasty and clean protein bars. You can get 20 percent off your order on the G2G Bar site with the code ALADYGOESWEST. 
• Organifi superfood supplements. I’m all about the Organifi Complete Plant-Based protein powder, the RED powder and the GOLD powder. You can get 15 percent off your order on the Organifi site with the code ALADYGOESWEST.
• Daily Harvest frozen foods. I’ve loved every single thing I’ve tried from this healthy frozen food delivery service, including the smoothies, flatbreads, desserts and bowls. You can get $25 off your first order on the Daily Harvest site with the code ALADYGOESWEST.
• Beautycounter. The best safe skincare and makeup. Send me a message, and I’ll share a 20 percent off code for your very first order.
• Les Mills On Demand streaming workouts. My favorite fitness brand. You can do a whole month of workouts during a free 30-day trial by using my special referral link here.
• Four Sigmatic. These superfood coffees and teas are so good — I especially love the Cacao Chill and Lion’s Mane Latte. Get 15 percent off your order on the Four Sigmatic site using the code ALADYGOESWEST.

Best reads

A few things from around the web 

• Carb myths. If you think carbs are bad, then you probably need to read this list of myths about carbs debunked by registered dietitians. Carbs are necessary, and all carbs are not created equal.
• Sunday scaries. I’m happy to say that I don’t have the “Sunday scaries” anymore, and a lot of that comes from the fact that I tend to work in small increments every day of the week, and don’t take weekends off, so I’m not dreading the work week on Monday. But the scaries are a REAL thing for a lot of people. This is a simple list of a few ways to try to alleviate that Sunday mindset.
• Nordstrom sale. In case you haven’t shopped the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale yet, here are my top picks that are on sale, and they are all under $100.

And here’s the quote of the week from the Calm app, which I use to do my daily morning meditations …

A Lady Goes West favorite archives 

• Mindset. In this post from earlier in the week, I shared a little bit more insight into what I’ve been learning from my life coach … “Three mindset shifts I’ve made recently.”

• Information overload. There’s so much out there, and unfortunately, it’s not all good … “How to know what health and fitness information to follow.”

Thank you for visiting the blog today, my friends. Have a fabulous day and weekend! 🙂 

P.S. Congrats to the winner of the leggings from last week, Kate.

Questions of the day

How was your week?

What’s one good thing going on in your life right now?

If you have kiddos, did they start school? Virtual or in-person?