Cuz I'm Happy...

Cue the Pharrell Williams song!

*actually please don't because that song grates on my nerves now - thanks local radio stations for overplaying it!

photo credit

Did y'all know that last Friday was International Day of Happiness? There was a Do Happy Today event on the plaza that is front of the library that I work at. The coordinator of the event asked for volunteers to help "sprinkle happiness" before and during the event. What is "sprinkling happiness"? It was as simple as this!

I have to be honest when I say there have been times in my life recently where I may not have been consciously taking the time to be happy, be present in the moment, be calm, etc. I have been on auto-pilot and that is not good!

photo credit 

When I volunteered to do the sprinkling, I began looking at the Day of Happiness website and realized  I was doing some of the things mentioned in the picture above....I just need to do them more often! What about you? Which of the "Ten Keys to Happier Living" do you need to practice more often?

I am going to diligently work on having more moments like these.

Here's to being carefree - present - grateful - happy!

It's Officially #FlatoutLove

Y'all know that I love food and that I am basically a fat kid at heart, right??



#LaOffseasonLoca has been really awesome in that I have been able to try different foods and work at being more creative with my meals. This is why I was incredibly excited to have the opportunity to review a new Flatout product that hasn't even hit shelves yet!*

*keep reading for a coupon to purchase Flatouts wraps and pizza crust!

Goodies!

Right before I headed to L.A. for TheFitExpo, a package of goodies arrived at my door from Flatout. I was so excited to see what they had sent, I took the box with me to work so I could open it there :) What I had received was packages of Flatout's new line of high protein, low carb flatbread wraps. They generously sent me two packages of each of three new flavors they will be launching. The three flavors are:

• Core 12 - this is their original wrap recipe made with chickpeas
• Red Pepper Hummus - also powered by chickpeas
• Sea Salt & Crushed Black Pepper - brought to you by navy beans
• 
  

I left early Thursday morning and since I knew I had a long day of driving ahead of me, I wanted to make sure that I ate something tasty & filling. Perfect time to try out the Sea Salt & Crushed Black Pepper wrap!

Don't bother me - I'm eating :)

I do not love eggs or egg whites but I am adding them to the "meal rotation" about 2-3 times a week. For this particular wrap, I used 4 medium egg whites. Combining the egg whites with a chicken sausage, a handful of spinach, some goat cheese, and Sriracha made me a do my happy wiggle!



Sunday morning before heading back to the expo, several FitFluential Ambassadors and I were invited to a "First Taste Breakfast" with the amazing folks of Flatout. We were able to see the packaging ideas, try out recipes using the wraps, in addition to learning more about the product we were sent.
Interesting pieces of information that I took away from the breakfast:

• Beans are high in protein and complex carbs so they can provide you with long-lasting energy.
• Beans have more antioxidant potential than blueberries.
• Eating beans has been shown to reduce hunger and overall calorie intake throughout the day.
• 
  

The Flatout table at the #LAFitExpo

When I got back from L.A. and saw The Mister, he asked me about the "tortilla things" on the counter. I explained to him that they were not tortillas but were flatbread wraps and told him I wanted him to try them.





He wasn't feeling extra adventurous that morning so he just used the wrap for one of his favorites, runny icky eggs :) The Sea Salt & Crushed Black Pepper was not his favorite so I told him he had to try the Red Pepper Hummus (which is my personal favorite!).





The Mister opted for carne asada, goat cheese, and Sriracha while The Princess and I had a shrimp-lentil-brown rice-olive oil concoction I threw together. Y'all know I'm not one for b.s. so when I say that my family is a big fan of these wraps, it's the truth!




Here are some recipe ideas for you to keep in mind when you buy your first set of wraps ;) and while ProteinUp won't hit the shelves for another few weeks, you can still experiment with the Flatout wraps and pizza crusts. Here's a coupon to use when you go shopping! https://www.hopster.com/offeres/flatout/13072852/1

I still have more wraps to use so....here's my question for you....what recipes should I try next??

This post is sponsored by FitFluential on behalf of Flatout.

City of Angels

A couple of days ago, I wrote my LA, Here I Come post and shared that I would be traveling to Los Angeles to cover TheFitExpo for Fitfluential. As I hit publish on the post, I knew that there was a possibility that I might not actually make it to the City of Angels. Issues/hiccups/speed bumps were appearing out of nowhere and I started to stress....BIG TIME! For days my stomach hurt, there was a pounding in the center of my forehead, and I wanted to cry. #idontdocrying

At the eleventh hour (Wednesday evening), everything fell into place and there was nothing left to stress/worry/cry about!

After sending the Princess off to school and doing a few chores Thursday morning, I hit the road. The drive from Tucson to Los Angeles is about 7 hours and while I have driven to California before, this was the first time I would be doing the drive by myself. I had my snacks and fruit punch HelixBCAAs handy, music and book to listen to, and I made sure to pee! :)

After 1 stop to fill up the gas tank and take a potty break and almost 7 hours later, I arrived. I may or may not thrown my arm in the air and screamed "yes" when I saw downtown...lol...I had survived the drive (which really wasn't that horrific) and rush hour traffic.

I will be staying with my brother Jonathan while I'm in town and I have to say, the man knows how to introduce you to his city! He took me to Katusya, which is owned by the company he works for, and is right by Staples Center. The food was perfection. The service was impeccable.

It was a really proud moment for me to see the managers of the restaurant come over to talk to my brother and to watch how professional he is and how well he carries himself. The kid (technically he's not a kid...but he will always be a kid to me! #bigsister) is definitely going places. Don't believe me? Check out this film project he and his friends created in less than 48 hours. They are currently one of the top 5 projects in the nation and are 1st in the online voting for People's Choice!

I'm off to see more of the city and enjoy some good eats. Tomorrow is the first day of the expo so stay tuned - follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and/or Twitter for updates!

More Than A Month!?!?

My last post was on November 25th!! How did I let so much time go by before doing a post?!? I have no excuses to give...but I do have pictures....so how 'bout I share those in a minute?!?

Life has been good to me. I am a happy healthy girl. I really have no complaints.

I plan to share with you some of the new songs on my Playlist of Power aka my workout playlist. And later in the week, I want to talk about my off-season and how I'm working on, not only my physical, but also my mental well-being.

Until then, here are some pictures to, in a way, update you on what's been going on in my life!

*you can also stay updated with my almost daily shenanigans on Instagram --> MrsFitLibrarian

My friend Savannah and I attended a local powerlifting competition

You can still purchase calendars from Firefighters vs Autisum

Supporting my brother-in-law Josue aka Honey as he rode in the
107 mile El Tour de Tucson

The Mister was home for Thanksgiving! Last Thanksgiving
we spent together was almost 3 years ago!

Pretty sure my niece Nya's leg warmers are the cutest thing ever!

Nya and I enjoying a pedicure during our Girls' Day Out :)

A night out with one of my best friends

Lolo's Chicken & Waffles always makes me do my happy wiggle

You know I love my Peeps <3

Yep. I wore this. To work. On Christmas Eve.

Uncle Tommy & Jaxon having fun on Family Picture Day :)

The Princess is growing up too fast! I can't stand it! 

Life. Plain & Simple.

I can't get a blogging schedule in place. I just can't do it. I have no idea what is wrong with me but I will start the day with every intention on blogging and then next thing I know, the day is over! What the shit as my mother-in-law would say :)

*you can always keep up with me over on Instagram! Follow me if you're not already -- MrsFitLibrarian

Hangin' out with my girl Lo on my birthday

The Princess and I enjoying a giggle at our birthday dinner!

13!?!? Where did the time go!?!?

Birthdays have been taking place. Not only mine but The Princess as well! It's hard to wrap my head around the fact that I have a teenager now...especially a teenager who is, eerily at times, very similar to me. She is a great kid and thankfully, she is a lot like her father as well (whew!). 

My sister with our parents on her birthday

My sister will be having her second baby in the next couple of months. Action Jaxon is getting bigger every day and he is a ridiculous amount of fun.

I love Reese's Oreos!

So does Jaxon!

He loves his Aunt T and Uncle Tommy. It could be the marshmallows and other treats we bribe him with but who cares. We taught him how to "make a muscle" - it's the cutest thing ever - I need to get a picture of him doing it! 

I'm trying not to die and Tom needs to turn the moment into a photoshoot :)

Sometimes I just need to lay down...catch my breath...and snap a photo :)

Baby boulders!

4 am and the gym is empty. #happymeathead

Training has been going well! I have been focusing on some of my weaker areas (cough cough...legs & glutes...cough cough) and these workouts are BRUTAL!!!! I love that I'm having to push myself in a way I haven't before - it keeps things fun & interesting.

New pre-workout from Eat the Bear

Love this tank! You can get one from Iron Bros Health.

yyyyeeeeaaahhh buddy!
Samples from the Ronnie Coleman Signature Series!

A sample of one of the GAT products Iron Bros Health carries.
This stuff is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! 

The guys always have the best care packages put together for me!

#supplementswag  :)

I'm extremely lucky to have to such a great sponsor in Iron Bros Health! They always take such great care of me and make sure I have the supplements I need to support my training and keep me healthy. This is especially important since it looks like I will be competing again this year. 

Yes. You read that right. Another show.

If all goes well and the body holds up, I will be stepping on stage on October 25th & 26th! The goal is to present a tighter, lean, more polished package than I have the last two times I've stepped on stage this year. 

Cross your fingers. 

It's definitely going to be an interesting ride!!