Lately I've Been...

Happy Hump Day! We're halfway to the weekend :) The other day I saw a post on one of my favorite blogs, Carrots N Cake, and Tina shared some random insights from everyday life, and I thought I'd lighten to mood over here and share some of my musings as of late. Enjoy!

Lately I’ve Been…

Making: Trader Joe's Organic Carrots of Many Colors.  I love these things! I just peel em, cut em up into bite-sized pieces, season with a bit of pepper, crushed red pepper and paprika. Roast at 400 until they slightly caramelize and you're done! They taste great and I enjoy the fun color it adds to my plate!
Cooking: Protein! Mrs. Dash has become a staple in my kitchen to jazz up huge batches of boneless, skinless chicken breast, ground turkey breast and eggs (I still can't jump on the Tilapia train - gross!). 
Drinking: Water. And black coffee. I really miss the taste of my coffee creamer... but I just suck it up and drink it black. I've noticed buying better quality coffee distracts me from the fact that I have to drink it plain.
Wasting: Time looking at menus of all my favorite restaurants and planning cheat meals. Ha, that's slightly embarrassing to admit, but I always keep it 100% with you guys!
Reading: Gods of Guilt by Michael Connelly. It's my book club's July selection and is written by the same author as The Lincoln Lawyer. Really great read so far!
Wanting: Twizzlers. Weird craving, but I want them. In. My. Belly.
Looking: Up bloggers who write about their fitness competition experiences. I enjoy reading other first-timers recap their stories! Takes a bit of the uncertainty out of it and calms any jitters I have about show day.
Playing: Ed Sheeran on Spotify. All. Day. Long. He's amazing! 
Wishing: I could see my girlfriends a bit more. Everyone has careers, personal lives and obligations. And being the only sober person at the bar gets old quick. When I went out last Saturday I had to run home at midnight, cook and eat my last meal and hit the hay to teach two Sunday morning barre classes. Deuces, social life! 
Enjoying: Odd Mom Out. It's rare a show makes me laugh out loud and this one does the job. 
Waiting: To take a vacation. Normally I travel once or twice a month somewhere fun, but with competition prep I have been somewhat locked down due to it being a straight pain in the arse packing all my food, supplements, finding a gym, etc. I'm thinking a trip to Napa in November sounds amazing :) 
Liking: My daily morning phone calls with these two amazing ladies. It's become sort of a tradition - and I love leaving the gym each morning and catching up with them. Having such a strong mom and sister to lean on lightens up my whole day :) We are the strongest tripod - always supporting and loving each other - the darkest and brightest of times.

Wondering: What I'm going to look like at my show. I've seen such changes in just 6 weeks - I really can't imagine what my body will look like in another 20ish weeks.
Loving: My support system. I really feel so blessed to have such incredible friends and family around supporting me (with my competition and beyond).  
Hoping: I get to see my family soon. It's been a few months and I need my fix!

Needing: A cleaning lady. My two bedroom condo isn't very large, but between being home a lot more and all the cooking/meal prepping, I feel like it's in a constant state of disarray. I try and pick up after myself but there is pretty much a gym bag and laundry baskets full of gym clothes everywhere, at all times. 
Wearing: Lululemon Speed Shorts. These little guys are perfect considering how hot and humid Atlanta is lately. I can move easily in them - and I have them in a ton of fun colors. I've also been channeling my Queens, NY roots and rockin Nike's Dunk Sky Hi Essential in pink and lovin' em. I wear em around town and to/from the barre studio. They make me walk with a little extra swagger ;) And these socks. If you haven't heard of Bombas, check them out. Great cause and by far the most comfortable socks on the planet. 
Following: Makeup tutorial accounts on Instagram. I recently bought a contouring kit and have become slightly obsessed with mastering the skill... amazing what a little highlighter and bronzer can do! Considering I spend 99.9% of my time in workout clothes, feels good to get fancied up sometimes.
Noticing: I am becoming increasingly content in my own skin. I'm sure a good amount can be attributed to getting in competition-ready shape, but overall I just feel good. I know where I stand with my relationships and work. I enjoy relaxing alone on the couch instead of frantically trying to make plans and stay busy. Just feels good to take a breath and appreciate the page I'm on in this book of life. 
Knowing: What I want. And refusing to settle for less. 

Thinking: I should foam roll more often. 
Feeling: Strong, happy, and content. Looking around at the current state of life, I'm feeling so comfortable witTurning a year older definitely makes you look at your life a little more closely and my life is a zillion times better than I ever imagined it to be.
Bookmarking: New and healthy recipes on Bodybuilding.com. Eating the same food day in day out can get monotonous, so I like switching it up. 
Opening: My box of goodies from Skin Food, a skincare company from Korea. I've heard great things about their products and recently ordered their black sugar mask, peach sake pore serum, and peach sake bb cream with SPF20. Once I've used them long enough to formulate an opinion, I'll post a product review!

XO,
Jenn