Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Are you there motivation? Its me, Elise

It seems odd to me that just when the #1800MinuteChallenge starts, I stop lacking any motivation. Since January, I've been up at 4:45am Monday-Thursday to hit the gym for weights and/or cardio and then taking barre class Tuesdays, Thursday, and Saturday.  I don't know what the heck happened last week but I seriously gave 0 cares about the gym.  Grrrr!  So this week it's been even harder to start back up.  I finally pulled out the 30 Day Shred DVD for yesterdays workout and am heading to barre tonight.  Gotta make myself get back on the morning gym train.

In other news, Mr. Michigan leaves on a business trip today for the rest of the week.  Because we both were independent for so long, I think we both look forward to these little breaks.  It gives us a chance to miss each other while enjoying some much needed alone time.  I finally finished the Hunger Games series last week and picked up Divergent to start while he's gone. Yes, I realize that I'm about 4 years late to both of these parties so if you've read the Divergent series, DON'T be a spoiler!

Happy Tuesday!

Thursday, April 3, 2014

April Goals

I truly believe that writing down your goals is the first step to achieving them, and as I've said before, I am going to start putting my monthly goals here on the blog.  I hope that this will keep me accountable and focused.

April Goals
1. Run my first 5K
(This is happening next weekend!)

2. Find the hottest birthday outfit for my 30th birthday
(A girl can't turn 30 in something she already owns)

3. Take additional steps towards my fitness certification goals
(Stay tuned for more on this)

4. Take a new class at the gym
(I've gotten so comfortable with bootcamp and RPM but I've heard that Body Pump is amazing)

5. Call at least 2 friends a week to catch up
(I live SO far from my friends and have not been the best about trying to keep in touch)

Hopefully this month I can cross all 5 goals off the list!

What are some of your goals?

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

#WCW Reality Edition

I don't think it's any secret on this blog that I love me some reality tv.  Now don't get me wrong, I don't watch just ANY reality show.  I mean, a girl has her standards :)
I thought in honor #WCW, it would be fun to do a reality tv edition. So here we go!

Hadley Hartz
























Hadley was introduced to audiences on the short lived Southern Belles on Soap Network. I think I randomly watched a mini marathon when I was sick one day and from then on, I never missed an episode. In the show, we watched Hadley face the world of being 20-something and single while all of her close friends were getting married and having babies. At the time, it was something I could TOTALLY relate too. While my Facebook news feed was full of diamond rings and sonograms, I was going on bad dates, in bad relationships, and convinced I'd never find "the one". As dumb as this sounds, watching someone as beautiful and charming as Hadley go through the same thing, made me feel like I wasn't a total loser :)

Yolanda Foster
via



















The gorgeous Yolanda Foster has quickly become one of my favorite Real Housewives. She is not only beautiful and charming, but she is one of the few wives who talks about the importance of eating clean and taking care of your body.  While I obviously don't know her, I'd like to think that her first defense isn't to go under the knife (like other RHOBH) but to simply drink water, eat her greens, and exercise.

Cameran Eubanks
via



















This southern beauty first graced the reality tv world when she made out in a hot tub with roommate Brad on Real World San Diego in 2011. I remember Cameran being one of my favorite cast members  because she was not only beautiful but hilarious. She is back in the reality tv world with a new show on  Bravo called Southern Charm.  This show follows a group of people that live in Charleston, SC. Cameran seems to be the only one without a sugar daddy or an inheritance but that doesn't stop her from commenting on how her castmates live their lives. Her southern wit and jokes about the men in her life who suffer from Peter Pan Syndrome make this one of my favorite shows of the week.

Courtney Kerr
via

























Maybe the most controversial lady on this list, Courtney Kerr was first seen on Most Eligible Dallas.  While this show didn't return for a 2nd season and showed some of the duchebaggery that comes from living in Dallas, I LOVED it.  Maybe because at the time, I was living in Dallas and loved seeing restaurants and bars that I frequented on the show. Maybe because I just like crappy reality tv. But I think it's because I absolutely loved hearing what was going to come out of this fashionista's mouth. Courtney's wit is as on point as her fashion which made her totally entertaining for me. I waited and waited for her spin-off Courtney Loves Dallas to start, and still have all 8 episodes saved on my DVR. If you like big hair and big personality, you'll like Courtney.


Tori Gozales
via

























Courtney Loves Dallas, brings me to my next reality lady, Tori Gonzales.  Tori is Courtney Kerr's BFF and while the 2 couldn't be any different, they are hilarious together. Tori owns a jewelry company with her sister and is never afraid to tell her friends when they were being less than stellar. This no holds barred-tell it like it is lady was fun to watch on tv every Thursday and is one of my favorite people to follow on social media.

I could obviously go on and on with this theme and talk about Kyle Richards, Lo Bosworth, Lauren Conrad, Bethenny Frankel, and others but I've gotta get back to work.

Happy Wednesday y'all!

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

March Goals Update & the #1800MinuteChallenge

Woohoo we all survived Monday!  I think that deserves a big pat on the back (or a drink)!

Last month, I decided to start posting my monthly goals on the blog to keep me accountable.  Let's see how I did with March goals, shall we:

March Goals
1. Work out 5X a week 
For the most part I stuck to this; Tuesday/Thursday I work out twice a day-cardio in the AM and barre class after work-so sometimes I cheat and let that count for 2 separate times
2. Re-focus my budget using the cash envelop system
I did get this set back up and am in the process of adjusting numbers. Saving $$ sucks!
3. Write at least 5 blog posts
I totally stuck to this one and you can read those posts here, here, here, here, & here.
4. Contact someone about a blog design
Done and I LOVE it! Whitney did an amazing job!
5. Keep the house clean by cleaning a little each day
Eek!  Not so much!  
6. Plan 2 romantic dates with Michigan
Life kinda got in the way of this one. We've spent a lot of time together with friends lately but not just the 2 of us.  Hey, we are very social and it's hard to say no during March Madness and St. Patrick's Day events!

Sooo 4 out of 6 isn't that bad, right?  I'm still working on my April Goals but I'll have them up as soon as they're done.

I'm super stoked that today is the 1st day of the #1800MinuteChallenge!  When Erin announced this challenge, I knew this was the perfect thing to keep me motivated for summertime!  I'll be posting a lot about this on Instagram so make sure to follow along.

Happy Tuesday yall!