Books Books and More Books!

 Happy September! No I am not excited for Fall but I don’t have a say in it so here we are. Fall means colder weather, shorter days and no more garden and flowers. Why would I like any of that? Anyway, my obsession with books has gotten even worse. Or better, however you want to look at it. Discovering BookTube, Bookstagram and BookTok has been so fun! Although I mostly just look to BookTube. I have been getting recommendations left and right! Some recommendations have taken me out of my comfort zone which I appreciate. I read another middle grade/YA book at the end of August called Parts and Labor:The Adventures of Max Dugan. This book was incredibly sweet. It’s about Max who’s dad has died in the war in Afghanistan and how he’s dealing with that along with being bullied and oh yeah an alien moves in next door. Max befriends this alien, Norbert, who I absolutely loved! I would’ve wanted to be his friend too. The problem is Norbert and his father are there to decide whether or not they are going to take over Earth and enslave earthlings. Of course it sounds a bit silly and childish but it was a great feel good read. It would be a great book to read with your middle grade kid. 

I have read 6 books in September so far and I am planning on doing some reviews for a few of them. I’ve read some great ones and some not so great one. I am currently reading a classic so I’ll let you know if I enjoy that as well. Basically reading has become my life and I am loving it. Oh! I also started a book journal which I will also do a a post about. It has been really fun coming up with different themes for each month and being a little creative. I’m also hoping it helps me remember what I’m reading. Something I definitely need to work on. Stay tuned for more book reviews and also more garden content! 

Long time no blog

 Hello! Wow it has been a minute since I’ve been here. That was not on purpose but life gets busy and Summer gets even busier. I hope everyone is enjoying the last days of Summer. My Summer has been pretty good minus getting shingles and Lymes. Yeah, good times. I wanted to pop on and see how everyone’s reading challenges are going for the year? I have read 15 books so far. My goal is 25. I honestly wish I was a little further along but I didn’t read anything in May and possibly April. I am back in a reading mood thanks to BookTube (YouTube videos about books) and trying to broaden my book genres a bit. I just finished a middle grade book called The Brave and really enjoyed it! Do not discount middle grade and YA because you think they are just for kids or the stories will be too juvenile or silly. Not the case! This book was so beautiful and heartbreaking/heartwarming. I really loved it and am glad I was introduced to it by BookTube. If you’re in a book slump I highly recommend watching a few videos and get some recommendations and just get yourself into the reading mood. My recommendations so far this year would be The Brave for a heartwarming story, Crying in H Mart for a a great memoir, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue for a really great fantasy book and The Last Mrs.Parrish for a psychological thriller/suspense. I’ve read some other great ones (and some not so great ones) you can follow along on GoodReads to find the full list! What are you reading at the moment? What new releases are you excited for? For me it’s Ruth Ware and Taylor Jenkins Reid’s newest books! Can not wait to read them! I’m about to start two thrillers and will report back when I’m finished. Happy reading! 

Did I lose weight?

 Ok so my “weight loss challenge” ended last week. Those 4 weeks just flew by! Just to recap I went through the company Habitual Fitness, the owner who also started the Milky Fitness Facebook group for nursing moms who are looking for support/advice when nursing and wanting to maintain a healthy supply. So you tell them your goals whether it’s weight loss, maintaining, weight gain, bulking etc. You also let them know if you are nursing and how often. I am no longer nursing and said I wanted to lose weight/inches. You then tell them what your activity level will be during the challenge. I told them I was going to be working out 4 times a week but then did let them know that I was working out more like 6 times a week and I did get my calories adjusted. Make sure you are eating enough calories!! They give you a meal plan according to your calorie intake along with some recipes and a lot of substitutions and ideas. You also get workouts for the gym, at home and great YouTube videos suggestions. Then there is the Facebook group you get to join along with the other women doing the challenge and that itself is worth joining! The support and motivation is so wonderful and makes a huge difference. Ok so did I lose weight? Yes! In 4 weeks I lost about 6.5 lbs! I also lost 2 inches off my waist, 1 1/2 inches off my hips, 1/2 inch off my bust, 1/4 off my arms 1 inch off my left thigh and I gained 1/2 inch on my booty!

🙌🏻 I am so happy with my results but I am nowhere near finished! This is a marathon not a sprint. I’m currently doing Caroline Girvans Iron Series on YouTube and I am loving that! I will include my before and after pictures here too. Any questions let me know and I will continue to keep you updated and share my progress. You can follow along at life_in_crumbs_blog on Instagram. life_in_crumbs_blog

Weight Loss Update!

Happy Saturday! I thought I would do a little weight loss update since I am now almost half way through my weight loss challenge thru Habitual Fitness. A week or two before my challenge started I did start to work out more frequently and track my eating a little better. I’m now working out about 5 days a week because honestly I’ve been enjoying it! Never thought I would say that! I usually have a day designated to a certain body part or area of the body. So legs/booty one day, arms shoulders, core etc. I also really enjoy low impact cardio and tabata. I love going on YouTube and finding a new video to try out or going back to do my favorites. I won’t share my meal plan because that would not be fair to the great people who made it but I am sticking around 1500-1600 calories a day and I’ve been eating really yummy food! Not low carb or anything but I am tracking my macros and trying to stay within range. I haven’t felt deprived of anything and it feels like something that is sustainable. Obviously life happens and I’m not always going to be perfect but I’m so happy with my progress. Did I mention I’ve lost 5 lbs! 🙌🏻 I don’t try to focus so much on the scale but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t tracking my weight and that number. Overall I’m feeling really good and I’m excited to keep going and get even stronger! I will check back in another week or so 😃you can also follow along on Instagram where I share meals and workouts! life_in_crumbs_blog

Losing Weight....Again

  Losing weight. Ugh why is it so hard to be motivated and commit to working out and eating better? WHY?! My weight has fluctuated so much through the years. It has gotten higher as I've gotten older and of course when I got pregnant, which is incidentally the time I felt the most beautiful and the most comfortable in my own skin. Imagine that. Anyway, it is so hard to be confident and not constantly compare ourselves to people we see on social media. I feel it especially as a mother that by 3 years post partum I should look exactly like I did before I got pregnant. My body is supposed to "bounce back" and show no sign of gaining 60lbs and growing an entire human being! What a bunch of crap! There is so much pressure put on women to be a certain size and look a certain way. I think the greatest thing you can do for your mental health is to get off social media or if you're like me and just can't possibly do that, at least go through and purge! Get rid of those accounts that make you feel bad about yourself, don't align with your values or honestly can just be triggering because you are doing too much comparing. I recently did that and it felt so good! Following body positive accounts like, Thebirdspapaya, thegarciadiaries, megsquats, chinaealexander, alexlight_ldn, aliciamccarvell, flawsofcouture, meg.boggs, just to name a few, has really helped shift my thinking and just leaves me in a better headspace. I find myself going on Instagram now and enjoying it and getting something from it rather than just scrolling and comparing and getting depressed. I also am dealing with some health issues which is contributing to my weight. Nothing serious, mostly just hormonal stuff which I will talk about in another post but it's just another road block to deal with and it's something that I know a lot of women are dealing with that isn't talked about enough.

I think one of the best things I've learned which sounds so silly now is to do workouts you enjoy! If you despise running then don't run! I hate HIIT workouts. My body hates them and they are never enjoyable but everyone seems to rave about them and makes it seem so easy and effective. I tried doing them for so long until I'm like "why am I doing something I hate?" I have found that me and my body prefer low impact cardio, standing workouts and yoga. I want to do a whole separate post on yoga because it was something I could never do! Yoga with Adrienne on Youtube is amazing! Highly recommend! The Body Project on Youtube is a wonderful channel for low impact cardio for all levels. I get an amazing workout and the instructors are really great. I love that they have bodies of all sizes doing the workouts. Another recent favorite has been Zumba Class. I am the least coordinated person in the word but even I can follow along and holy moly does it make me sweat! Keoni is another great Youtuber. He does walking and cardio workouts if you're looking for low impact and getting those steps in. 

Monday I start another weight loss challenge. I hate calling it that because not everyone is doing it for weight loss but it's the easiest way to explain it. It's through a fitness/breastfeeding group on Facebook and I did it once before the year that George was born and had great success. I am no longer nursing but they help everyone not just nursing moms. The business is Habitual Fitness if you want to check them out! I lost 12lbs in a month last time I did their program but I was also nursing around the clock so we'll see how it goes this time around. I would honestly love to lose 30-40lbs. It seems like a lot and it is but I'm also trying not to focus on the number too much. I took my measurements and I am ready for a change. I have already started adjusting my eating and have been working out 3-5 times a week. I've lost 3lbs already and I feel really motivated! Let's just hope that motivations sticks around! I will keep the blog updated on my progress and maybe even post my before and after pics. EEEKK! We'll see. Wish me luck and follow me along on Instagram too at life_in_crumbs_blog. 

 Throwback to me living my best pregnant life :)

My Favorite App To Get Free Stuff

 Who doesn't love free stuff? If you have any kind of presence on social media and don't mind posting about products then you need the Influenster app! Influenster sends you products (for free) in return for honest reviews. The more social media presence you have the higher your "impact store" is. The impact score is a reflection of the amount of followers and friends you have connected to your accounts. You can choose which social media accounts you want to connect and you do not have to be an influencer with thousands of followers to be chosen. You can even choose to not have to review on your accounts. To get started you download the Influenster app, connect your social media accounts, and fill out your profile. There are also little questionnaires called "snaps" that you fill out. It's basically their way of getting to know you and what your interests are and the products you already use. To help your chances of getting products you can also write reviews on products and things that you already use. This can be makeup, skincare, vitamins, food, you name it! You can also like other peoples reviews and interact with them on the app. I think this all helps your chances of getting what they call Voxboxes. There are also virtual voxboxes which usually means they give you money back for buying a product and writing a review. I usually choose not to do those. So, what kinds of things have I gotten for free from Influenster? Makeup, foundation, eye liner, mascara, lipstick, eye brow pencil, eyeshadow, setting spray, setting powder and I'm sure I'm forgetting something. Other things I've received are eye creams, moisturizer, serums, vitamins, hair tools, lawn fertilizer and bug repellent, diapers for my son, pacifiers, muffin mix, chicken stock, medicine, products for breastfeeding, self tanner, shaving cream and razor, dishwasher detergent, and more! Can you even believe that?! And we aren't talking about no name products and sample sizes. Yes, some things are sample size but they will tell you that before receiving it. This is name brand stuff like Maybelline, Revlon, Smashbox, ELF, Tatcha, Pampers etc. Once you sign up and make your profile and do your snaps you can be eligible for receiving products. They will send you an email saying something like "Are you a good fit for our next campaign?" and you'll take the survey and go from there. Check frequently for emails and keep a presence on the app and hopefully you'll be picked! Reviews are usually put on Influenster, Instagram, Facebook and usually the company website. Again, you can choose if you want to link those accounts and do reviews. They want honest reviews too! Don't just tell them what you think they want to hear. This was a long winded way to say that I absolutely love this app and the things I have received from them! Have you tried Influenster before? If so what have you got to review? 

Hard Boiled Eggs In The Air Fryer

 Hard boiled eggs are one of my favorite snacks. You can use them in so many different ways and in so many different recipes. Making hard boiled eggs isn't hard but can be a pain in the butt. I have a few different ways I make them but lately my go to way is the air fryer. I love our air fryer! We have a Gourmia air fryer that I got at a rummage sale. We probably use it once a week or so for different things. Also great for heating up leftovers like pizza! Back to the eggs. I have never done more than probably 6 at a time but if you have a bigger capacity air fryer I'm sure it would be fine. Set it to 250 degrees and you can cook them anywhere from 15-19 minutes. This will depend on your air fryer too I suppose. If you like more of a soft boiled egg stick closer to the 15 minutes. I prefer mine DONE DONE so I do 18 or 19 minutes. After they are done cooking put them in a bowl of ice water or very cold water. I usually let them sit for about 5-10 minutes and then peel them. These are the easiest peeling eggs I've ever made! I just hit them gently on the counter and then peel the shell. They come out perfect every time and you have minimal clean up. Give this a try and let me know how it goes!