As I was writing this post, I thought: “When do I stop titling the current faves with the week of quarantine?” The truth is: I don’t know. Things are still strange, so for now, the week remains.

How are you, my friends? This was a super busy week for us, actually. Brady’s very happy to be back to school, and it was so nice to have a little freedom with him gone two mornings this week — he gets so pumped up on school days, it’s really quite cute.

Other than that, I worked, taught two virtual classes, had several meetings and was even in the live virtual studio audience of “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” which was totally an out-of-the-blue thing. It all happened quickly, but it went down like this: A producer from the show reached out to me over the weekend on Instagram about having me appear very briefly in a segment about moms. I had to submit a video and sign a waiver, and then I had several discussions with the producer about how it was going to work. Then, the day before the taping of the show, they changed plans for the segment, didn’t need me any longer and asked me to instead just be part of the virtual audience. The taping fell mostly on a morning when Brady was going to be in school, so I did it. I’ve actually always wanted to be in the live audience of a talk show. I wouldn’t say this fulfilled that hope, but it was certainly an interesting experience to do from home. The episode will air next week. And if you watch it, you may see me in the virtual audience or see my Tweet on the show. Pretty fun!

Here I am with my “wine” (which was actually kombucha) and red lipstick on a Wednesday morning at home ready for the live taping …

Now let’s get to the faves …

Current faves

Home

Our new front door

I can’t believe we’ve been in our house for almost two-and-a-half years. If you’re newer to the blog, then you may not remember the trials and tribulations we went through to buy our first home here in the Bay Area.

Dave and I were furiously looking for a home when I was pregnant with Brady. But after putting in 10 offers and getting beat out by others going way over the asking price (a common theme in this competitive and pricey area), we were so frustrated, we took a break from looking. Then, about two months after Brady was born, our realtor (and friend) took us to see a house that was not listed yet. It ended up being the best house we’d seen in our area by far. And somehow, someway, we made an offer and bought the house, moving in with Brady strapped to my chest at just 12-weeks-old.

We moved in January 2018 and have been so happy here. The house has everything we need, but there’s always been something that bothered me — the front door. Our house was built in 1977, and everything in the house has been redone except for the front door. It was brown, ornate, and just didn’t fit in with the style of the rest of the house — inside or outside. I despised it with all of my being.

Here’s the original front door …

I tried to go down the path of getting a new front door a few times before now, but because the door is not a standard size, it always seemed like it was going to be too expensive and too much effort to actually make it happen.

Well, thanks to quarantine and being home all the time, I finally decided to figure this project out. I reached out to one of my loyal group fitness class members, who also happens to be an amazing general contractor. He helped me get connected to some front-door distributers, and I worked with one to find and order the perfect craftsman-style front door. After we chose the door (from this brand), we waited for about six weeks for it to come in. Then, we selected the paint colors and the framing/casing to go around it. This week, it was installed. YAY!

Here’s the new front door …

I’m so pleased with how it turned out. I’ve always wanted a bright red door, and it goes quite nicely with our bright blue house. We also got a new fence on the front-side of our house a couple of months ago, so these two changes have made a big difference in our home’s curb appeal, if you will. Yay for home improvement! That will do it for house projects for now. It was a lot of excitement for Brady and Rudy to have people over working on things though. 

Food

Birch Benders frozen waffles

Switching subjects like …

I usually like to have a different breakfast on the weekends than I have during the week. Anyone else?

During the week, I eat overnight oats with a banana or baked oatmeal with a banana — every single day. I make it ahead of time, it’s filling and nutritious, and it’s my easy no-decision-needed-go-to-first-meal-of-the-day. However, on the weekends, I like to switch it up. (Want to see a full day of my eating? Head here for a day of eats and head here for breakfast ideas.)

When I was grocery shopping at Sprouts the other day, I picked up two boxes of these frozen toaster waffles from Birch Benders, a buttermilk version and a Paleo version. I’m familiar with the brand, because I’ve bought the pancake and waffle mix many times before and enjoyed it.

The mixes are delicious, but it takes a few steps to make them, and it also makes a mess. That’s where the frozen varieties come in. So much easier. As far as nutritional content, both the Paleo and buttermilk toaster waffle versions are really quite good for a processed food, without any terrible fillers or anything artificial.

I gave Brady the buttermilk version, and I had the Paleo version. The waffles are fluffy, but tasty, and they toast up nicely in the toaster. They are also the perfect vessel for almond butter and a banana for a little more staying power too. Because a waffle by itself does not fill you up.

I wouldn’t eat these every day, but they’re a simple alternative to other frozen things, so there you go. We’re happy to have them in the freezer for the weekend ahead.

Workouts

Weekly workouts 

Here are my workouts from last week …

• Monday: 30-minute upper-body weights, 10-minute core, 20-minute cycle, 5 p.m.
• Tuesday: Taught 45-minute barre, 12 p.m., 20-minute cycle, 6 p.m.
• Wednesday: 30-minute GRIT Strength via Les Mills On Demand, 10 a.m., 15-minute cycle, 6 p.m.
• Thursday: Taught 45-minute barre, 12 p.m., 30-minute POP Pilates, 6 p.m.
• Friday: 45-minute weights circuit, 10:15 a.m.
• Saturday: 30-minute cycle, 10-minute arms, 10 a.m.
• Sunday: 20-minute yoga, 6 p.m.

This past week of workouts was pretty good. I wanted to lift weights four times and I mostly fulfilled that, although my fourth session was only a 10-minute arms workout on the bike. I’ve totally adapted to working out at home now, but I’m feeling the need to switch things up a little. But overall, this week was complete, with weights, cardio, core and even an active recovery day with some light yoga to lengthen and relax.

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 10 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 

• Fiber. Statistics show that most Americans need more fiber in their diets. Here’s an article that tells you about the two different kinds of fiber, why you need them both and which foods are the best sources of fiber.
• A simple gratitude mindset trick. This is a great article on why we compare ourselves to others and how we can overcome the negativity we feel from comparison. Scroll through to the end to see the gratitude trick about saving gratitude pictures on your phone. Love it. Doing it!
• Coconut oil. Because it’s just so darn useful, here are a few ways you can treat your hair with coconut oil. I use coconut oil in my hair for moisture several times a week, by the way.

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 

• Skincare. Because wrinkles are a real thing … “The five best Beautycounter products for aging skin and fine lines.”

• Breakfast. It’s pumpkin season, and I will be making this one for breakfast soon … “Superfood pumpkin oatmeal breakfast bake (gluten-free).”

Thank you for visiting today, my friends! Stay hydrated and be good out there! 🙂 xoxo

Questions of the day

How was your week?

Do you have any plans for the weekend?

What was your best workout this week?

Have you ever been in the studio audience of a live show?