Hi, friends! How was your week? Ours was good.

This was sort’ve a big week in our house, because Brady started preschool on Wednesday. His original preschool from last year ended up closing down, so he’s at a new school that’s close to our house. And we’ll talk more details in the faves below.

Other than Brady’s return to school, this week, I taught some virtual classes, worked and — wait for it — got my nails done for the first time in more than six months. I’m happy to say that our local nail salons can now operate outside. And hopefully, one day, our gyms will open back up too, because it’s been a while.

Let’s get to the current faves …

Current faves

Family

Brady’s first week of preschool

This week, Brady had his first day of preschool for the year. We had gone back-and-forth about whether to send him this year, and in the end, we felt like it was the right decision. He did too.

Brady has not been away from our house or without us in a very long time (outside of Dave and I going on two day-trips to wine country). And so it definitely felt weird to drop him off somewhere, but it also felt good to have him away at an organized activity — learning and playing.

By the way, his new preschool has a ton of precautions in place to keep the kiddos safe (like temperature checks, reduced class sizes, having kids bring their own snacks and keeping parents out of the room too).

He’ll be in school for three hours in the morning, three days a week. And he is beyond excited to be able to play with other kids his age. He hasn’t been around other kids (outside of a few playdates) since early March. I think this will be a great arrangement for all of us and perhaps a tiny sense of more normalcy. Here’s hoping!

When Brady woke up on his first day of school, and I went into his room, he literally gleed with delight when I told him it was finally time to go to school. We had been talking about it for weeks.

We tried to take some pictures before he went to school, but the sky was a super-strange dark orange color from haze and trapped smoke from nearby fires, so we took the pictures after he got home … 

He’s not a big fan of pictures, but is all smiles once the camera is away. And these orange-hued pictures will forever remind of us of the very strange year of 2020. 🙂 

Fun

Golden Gate Park picnic

This past weekend, we went into the City for another picnic at Golden Gate Park with my sister-in-law, Gwena, and her boyfriend, James.

It was so hot this day. For those of you who don’t know the strange intricacies of San Francisco weather: The City of San Francisco is usually pretty cool (and temperatures can fluctuate by about 10 degrees throughout the various neighborhoods, as well), and only on occasion are there really hot days, and that usually happens in September (whereas June and July are some of the coldest months of the year).

Well, this day was one of those rare hot days. It was in the 80s at the park. Dave and I were in shorts, expecting weather in the 70s (which is what the forecast called for). But we put Brady in some khakis and a short-sleeve shirt.

Just a few minutes into our park visit, Brady was red-faced and sweating from running around in the heat. So we took some scissors and chopped his khakis into shorts, took off his shoes and socks, and then tied his hair back with the excess fabric from the pants. It was cute, and it cooled him off nicely. Just enough to sit down and have our picnic together …

We were at the park for about two hours hanging out. We had some mimosas, avocado toast, fruit skewers and enjoyed a great time chatting and chilling on our blanket in the shade. It felt good to get out of the house, because that was pretty much the only thing we did all holiday-weekend long.

The rest of the weekend was actually rather boring. It was over 110 degrees and smoky in our neck of the woods, so we stayed inside. Once again. Man, times are weird. I’m over the weirdness. Anyone else?

Workouts

Weekly workouts 

Here are my workouts from last week …

• Monday: 40-minute weights, 30-minute CXWORX via Les Mills On Demand, 5 p.m.
• Tuesday: Taught 45-minute barre, 12 p.m., 15-minute cycle, 6 p.m.
• Wednesday: 30-minute arms, 10-minute core via Peloton, 6 p.m.
• Thursday: Taught 45-minute barre, 12 p.m., 20-minute cycle, 6 p.m.
• Friday: 45-minute full-body weights, 10:30 a.m.
• Saturday: 10-minute yoga, 6 p.m.
• Sunday: 30-minute BODYPUMP via Les Mills On Demand, 11 a.m., 10-minute yoga, 6 p.m.

This week was a solid week of workouts, and I had a new goal. I wanted to lift weights four times this week, instead of my usual three sessions. I was able to fit all four in, and it felt good. Let’s see if I can keep up with this additional resistance session each week. 

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 15 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 

• All about sleep. This is a long article, but it’s incredibly helpful. Sleep is so important, and if you’re not getting enough sleep, you’ll be able to tell in many areas of your life (low energy, increased cravings, poor recovery from workouts, etc.). Check this one out if you need help making a plan to improve your sleep.
• Closet cleaning tips. I don’t know about you, but I love to clean out my closet. It feels good to purge things, make space and touch and feel everything I have in my wardrobe. This is an excellent list of items that you definitely don’t want to keep in your closet. I think I’m ready for a fall cleaning over here.

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 

• Les Mills. Because it’s one of my favorite topics. This post has the best workouts on the platform and a link for a free 30-day trial to the service … “The best workouts on Les Mills On Demand.”

• Mom stuff. I’m due for a family and mom life post soon. Here’s a good one from the archives … “Five essential things that truly helped me as a new momma.”

Thank you for visiting A Lady Goes West today, my friends. I’ll see you over on Instagram! Take care! xoxo

P.S. Definitely taking a moment to remember 9/11 today and always.

Questions of the day

How was your week?

Do you have any plans for the weekend?

What was your best workout this week?