Five on Friday!

HOORAY!! We made it to Friday!

Time to share my positives of the week.. 

1. I cashed out on some giftcards and bought new towels for our household. 

2. I am addicted to working out! I love the joy and the hardwork. I've lost 4 lbs this month and this quote makes me feel invincible. I am excited to see more weight melt off and smaller sizes and the pink bikini that I've waited my whole life to wear to the beach. 

3. I get to have a mini golf date with my parents & best half tomorrow night!! 

4. Saturday I get the whole day with my best half on an adventure. Fazoli's for dinner :) :)

I used to work there & was THE breadstick lady. 

5. This dog is my favorite. My bro's dog is incredible. She is super cute and gives the best hugs. :)

Hope you have a fantastic weekend no matter what you're doing. Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you back here! If you want to keep up with my adventures feel free to follow me on Instagram HERE! :) 

Five on Friday!

Hooray, we made it to Friday. It's been a long week. But its over and the weekend has returned.

Today I am still in a rather high celebratory mood. Wednesday was my 3rd wedding anniversary, and I shared the story of my big day from my eyes, the bride.

Today I am celebrating our celebration thus far this week.

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#1.// We celebrated at Smokey Bones. Who doesn't enjoy some BBQ & Sweet Tea after work?

#2.// We both enjoyed some BBQ - he had beef brisket. I had smoked turkey.

#3.//We both had gifts for each other - I gifted him with the shirt in the top right: "I put ketchup on my ketchup." That fits him to a tee! aha.He gave me Anchorman 2 !! :) 

#4.//My husband woke up Tuesday with a head cold so I knew there was a possibility he'd fall asleep super early. I called it.  So I picked out 'A League of Their Own.' Favorite movie!

#5.//We didn't get dessert on Wednesday because it was lots of food. But if you're coming to Orlando anytime soon or if you're familiar with the area - you need to stop by Twistee Treat! It's one of those amazing gems for ice cream here. 

Chris got a Waffle cone dipped in Butterscotch. I got a large vanilla with Pina Colada cone. Made me want to take a trip to the beach. Staycation is SO close!! :) 

This has been a fantastic week for Chris & I. I've been staying motivated, getting up an hour early daily to do the elliptical. Been working out for 2 weeks straight and I am telling a difference. I feel really good, really positive. I am excited to weigh in this weekend but regardless what the #'s say - I will keep on, keepin on. I keep  thinking -  in 3 months, all these good choices will pay off. & I am hoping to lose close to 50 lbs by October. All is going well on that front! :)

Hope you enjoy your weekend!! Take care, thanks for stopping by & I'll see you back here next week! :) 

Five on Friday!

Happy Friday, planet Earth! :)

Been posting all week. But now it's time to celebrate because we reached the end of the week. & it's time to reflect. :) [I haven't done this post in awhile so some of these are from last week but still - all awesome.]

1. I absolutely love my brother's dog, Alice. She is literally my best friend. Always gets so excited when we come over and she is just super cuddly. She wasn't too keen on our photo-shoot.  But she is patient with me. Sometimes she'll rest her head on my leg.

2. Finally made it to Gold level with Starbucks. Been waiting for 2 weeks for this beautiful gift to arrive and now I get to get some drinks. Thanks to giftcards, I am going to keep this status for as long as possible!  It's strange this has been on my bucket list. 

3. We're pretty close to our #third wedding anniversary (NEXT WEEK!) and wanted to remember the card on the left with a note from my hubs on our wedding day. The card on the right is from our first anniversary. This year we're doing something different. :)

4. #KateVoegele is one of my favorite artists. I loved her scenes on #OneTreeHill -- I decided to send her a tweet giving her some high praise. & I was notified that she favorited my tweet. I felt pretty cool!

5. Last weekend, we were at my parents house and we played a championship game of SkipBo. I thought it'd be a great idea to take a #familyselfie. YAY. :)

Hope you have a fantastic weekend. I am excited to spend my weekend with my Dad. I bought him a pretty fantastic gift. I plan on making him a cake as well. I think its going to be a productive weekend of usual weekly wife stuff/working out. Happy to say I've been working out for a week straight. . Enjoy your weekend - see you back here next week! :) :)

Five on Friday! :) :)

I am a little late on this but Happy Friday! I am blessed to work for an university that recognizes the hard work and service of the students who are veterans. Growing up, I never understood what Memorial Day really was. I knew it was military related but since being promoted to my military team, I've gotten to learn first-hand exactly the sacrifices that these men and women have endured. Being in the military is a real deal - you have a LOT of responsibilities, sometimes on very little sleep -- but at the end of the day, you are keeping all of us safe. Today at our Memorial Day ceremony, our keynote speaker mentioned what his version of what a veteran is -- it was roughly a billion degrees outside but from what I remember - People sleep quietly while the men and women are standing outside their door keeping the peace. Something to that effect. I was thrilled that I got to enjoy Chickfila & Jeremiah's Ice while downing bottles of water. Turns out I also got a tad sunburned, which is going to be a super fun tan. Alright - time to celebrate my week and be glad it's the weekend.

1. I think the best part of the week is that my baby seester finished her last day of finals for middle school. She's officially a FRESHMAN in high school! #classof2019 Goodness, I am slightly feeling pretty old. :) :) (far right - this is an older pic).

2) I have absolutely fallen in love with the flavor of anything and everything Birthday Cake. It comes in m&m's, ice cream. It's an incredibly rich flavor. I had some iice cream just now because that goes perfectly with my Scandal marathon and I licked the bowl like my pups would. 

3) Tomorrow is a busy day. My hubs is going to the dentist, I am finally going to Goodwill and donating EVERYTHING that I've been wanting to donate for the past few YEARS. I keep saying I am going, but then I don't and its just accumulated. I don't mean to insult or make fun of people who are on the show 'Hoarders'. But I kind of feel like all this stuff is quickly heading in that direction. Another awesome fact is that I get to go on a mini golf double date with my hubs, my bestie and her mister.. Yay for Groupons & Taco date :) :)

4) This week I took a hard look at my #weightloss goals and came up with a new workout routine. It was hard, sweaty and I downed an entire bottle of smartwater in a short time span. I tell you what - the guy who does Zumba Expert level resembles Channing Tatum in Magic Mike. & Jillian Michaels after those 40 minutes? Brutal! 

But worth it. Just reminded to take it day by day. :)

5. I think the best part of my entire week is this week was crossing off a lot of little to - do's on the bigger to-do list. I watched the next big talent win the title of "The Voice" this week. We've been working on painting the room that will be for our future babies. It's the planner in us. It helps keep the dream real that this condition of mine after I lose all the weight for my #BiggestLoser moment hopefully by next fall -- won't give us any issues trying to start our family. 

This week had its ups and downs but all in all - its important to keep the spirit and momentum up as high as possible. I need to keep working out, even on days when I want to crawl up and keep my dreams on top of my sweet tooth. I worked hard and while tonight's reward was ice cream and a Scandal marathon --  Mind you, this is just a pep talk for myself but sometimes I need to be transparent and honest about my goals instead of keeping them on Post-It Notes.

Off to measure for new shelves while keeping on with this Scandal marathon! I'm thinking since tomorrow in Central Florida will be 96 degrees - I will need to get my hands on Publix Sweet Tea! :) 

Thanks for stopping by & I'll see you back here tomorrow! You stay classy, planet Earth ;)  ~ J

five (on) FRIDAY faves

                        Happy Friday, friends!

            Goodness – each time I sit down to write a blog post, life gets in the way. Most of the time for good reasons. This week I finally did something good and positive – I started jogging while on my daily pup walks after work. But its FRIDAY & I knew that I needed to write out some faves of my week to share with y’all J

         

  This week at the University I work with was SPRING BREAK!

SUPER nice to not have to wrestle students for parking spots. They’re not technically supposed to be parking in the staff lots but they do & when you’re running late – it just makes those 50 circles around the lot even more frustrating. This week they treated us staff to some of my absolute favorite things: Tijuana Flats, bowling, 4Rivers and yesterday – Jeremiah’s Italian Ice. Made my day.

  This weekend & well tonight – I am going to Epcot for a few rides & fireworks. I’m excited to be back – I get to go so much I feel I’ve taken up residence!

From the Flower & Garden festival - Epcot//April 2014

This weekend while I’m at my second home – I am finally getting a new accessory – Minnie Mouse ears @ 20% off. Thank you purchase from Starbucks at Disney for giving me this opportunity!

Been eyeing this for months!

Last Friday night - I went grocery shopping before Easter & did all my grocery shopping at Target after work. Combined with Cartwheel deals, big ol' stack of coupons and my red card - I saved so much - I was proud. 

Lastly, while shopping – I finally tried out these new delish treats – Birthday Cake M&M’s. Oh my goodness, they have replaced my old fave peanut butter M&M’s. If you ever want chocolate cake and want lower calories, ladies – grab a bag, you won’t be sorry!

Hope you have a truly FANTASTIC weekend. Thanks for stopping by. Hopefully I will get rested up this weekend so I can get back to posting more than once a week! ~ J

       

Five for Friday!

Happy Friday, friends! :)

 

This has been honestly an insane week. While I am pretty psyched its Friday, its not a real Friday since I work tomorrow. But I digress - it's time for my second Five on Friday post to link up with all y'all. 

1) As previously mentioned on my blog, I am in the process of writing my first book, well ebook through Amazon. I was brainstorming ideas and came up with a chapter that I hadn't even thought of inspired by my recent surgery. I am now recruiting individuals who would be interested in reading my chapters for grammatical errors and overall flow - if you're interested feel free to contact me at jessica_whitney@hotmail.com .. (Thanks in advance, my goal is to hopefully publish by the end of December 2014.)

2) There is something fantastic truly about receiving packages in the mail even when you know they're coming. Waited an extra week for my pictures but it was worth it - they are beautiful!

 

3) This has felt like the world's longest week and this is how I chose to greet my Friday. Arby's Mint Chocolate shake.

4) Thanks to giftcards - I was able to score two new gorgeous Target maxi skirts for only $2.17 out of pocket. Cannot wait to rock these out. 

 

5) I finally got back to working out this week. I am definitely getting back to it and my motivation is refueled. I've been hearing alot about Daily Burn and I am curious if it's worth it. But this year is my 10 year reunion from HS. & my wedding anniversary is coming up in June so I want to look good for both. 

I heard on the radio that on Saturday only - Old Navy is having a tanktop sale for $2 each (limit 5) in store only. I know what I'll be doing after work. Been wanting new tanktops lately especially with my new maxi skirts on the way! Have a fantastic weekend! I'm thinking maybe the beach & a few Pina Coladas myself! ~ jessica

Five on Friday!

 

Finally decided that since my favorite Girl Between the Lines linkup is down finished – sad face – that I needed to join up a new one. So I am going to try to be committed to the Five on Friday craze that I see but I never remember to do. Lo and behold – here I am. - my first one.  

1.       Last night we hit up Tarjay & Walmart for our biweekly grocery shopping trip. I am happy to share that between the two trips with my Cartwheel App (if you love Tarjay/saving money, try it!), coupons and sales in the store – I saved $12. I was pretty happy. 

2.       When we were on our Disney cruise last week – on Friday, we woke up in Nassau to see that the Disney Wonder was also in our port. We were excited because usually we only see Carnival in the port when we’re there. More exciting since we booked our 2015 Disney cruise through the Wonder. They’ll be stopping in Nassau so its exciting to see this ship up close.

 

 

 

 

3.       First off – I realized the day after I got back that I have am allergic to pollen. Never in my life before has this so dramatically made me excited to breathe. I feel like it really does hurt me at work in terms of concentration. But this does sum up my week & has made me feel like I am suddenly old & hard of hearing. I hate (with a passion) being congested.

 

4.       The week before my cruise I participated in my first focus group that paid me. It was an interesting experience but nonetheless, I am excited because I am finally using it to buy my new handbag – I was originally waiting to treat myself for my birthday plus I’m a Disney Annual Pass Holder so I will get 10% off. I fell in love with it & can’t wait to own this bag.

 

 

5.       When I came home from the Bahamas on Sunday am, I saw on my Freebies 2 Deals email website, which you need to follow. She is amazing & just wrote her first book that I intend on buying. I just happened to catch the last day of a Snapfish photo prints deal that let me print most of my cruise pics for 99 cents + shipping. = $7 I plan on a few scrapbooking dates with my mom soon. It’s here in Florida and I am supposed to get it tomorrow!

 

Thanks for stopping by. Have a fantastic weekend. This week after vacay has been super slow and I am definitely counting down to my weekend starting at 6pm. I have my sisters over for the weekend since my parents are celebrating their 32nd anniversary simultaneously. :)