Books!

How lame is it that I have homework to do over the holiday weekend?  In my opinion, it is extremely lame.  So lame, that I'm having a hard time making myself do it.  It will get done, just not right this minute.

I've been writing a little bit about all of the books I've read this year, and I've gotten a little behind.  So here is a little something on what has been on my nightstand the past month or so.

I finished The Choice by Nicholas Sparks today.  It's been a while since I've read Nicholas Sparks, and for the most part I really enjoy his books.  While most of his books are kinda the same, this one was a little different.  It was easy to read and I enjoyed it.  A lot of his books leave me depressed and while this one was sad, I wasn't bawling like a baby like I usually am.  I liked it, and it was a good change in pace from the other books I've recently read. 

I absolutely had to read the latest Sookie Stackhouse book Dead in the Family.  I was a little disappointed, I'm not sure if it was because I was so excited for it or if it was because this book was a little slower paced and not as intense as Dead and Gone which preceded this one.  But overall it was pretty good.  If anything else it got me even more excited for Eric Northman/Alexander Skarsgard to be back in my life in two weeks :)

And before those two, I read Evernight by Claudia Gray.  Two of the girls at worked seemed to really like the series and both told me the books get WAY better after this one, which is a good thing.  This book was random, and not in a good way.  I like to be surprised when I'm reading, who wants to read something super predictable?  But it's like the surprise in the book came from left field, it was just awkward.  By the end of the book I was over the awkwardness, but by the time I started getting into it, the book was over.  So I have the second book in the series Stargazer and I'm going to read it before I make my final decision on how I feel about the book.  I'm guessing Evernight was really meant to provide background info necessary to set up the rest of the series, we'll see.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday weekend and that you get some good reading in!

Shakeology Days 2 & 3

I'm done with my Shakeology cleanse!  And let me tell you, it was definitely a challenge.  I've never done any type of cleanse or fast and it was tough.  But I feel great today. 

Day 2 was really hard.  I tried changing up my schedule, which I don't think was as effective.  I was pretty irritable and stayed hungry this day.  I skipped my workout because I definitely wasn't feeling it. 

Day 3 was the easiest.  I guess my body had started to adjust and I really didn't mind it.  We ended up going out to dinner, but I followed the guidelines pretty closely!  I ordered edamame, I love that stuff, some shrimp and a side salad.  And no wine for me at dinner, I was good and had lots and lots of water.  I did a very small/light workout at the house this day too.  Not much at all, but something is better than nothing right?

Overall, I lost 4 pounds, my face is clearing up and I feel great as a result from the cleanse.  This is something I will definitely do again in the future, not for a couple of months though.  Now I just need to stay motivated by eating better and having my Shakeology for one meal a day.  Oh, and working out better :)

Hope you all are having a fabulous week!

Day One

Day one of my Shakeology Cleanse/Challenge was pretty intense.  I'm changing it up a smidge tomorrow to help with some of the issues I had today.  I thought I was going to pass out after the gym, I think it was from my decrease in calories.  After my grilled chicken and salad for dinner I felt much better, so no worries.  Still going strong, I'll keep everyone posted on my next two days!

Shakeology

I have recently become a lover of Shakeology.  

Don't know what that is?  Click here or here to find out more. The lovely Beth, a Beach Body coach, is doing a Shakeology Challenge starting tomorrow and I am joining her and her lovely team.  We are doing the three day Shakeology "cleanse" (I say it in quotes, because it's not your typical cleanse you might be thinking of) and I am really excited.  I've been struggling with my weight for about 2 years and I'm to the point where I am just plain unhappy with myself.  I thought summer and bathing suits would be enough motivation for me to get my act together, but it took getting engaged and not wanting anything that I can prevent to ruin my wedding day to really get me going.  So I'm doing the three day cleanse and hoping it will be a good jump start to get me going!  John knew how excited I am about this and about how much it means to me to get healthy, so he surprised me with a mini single serving blender I can take to work with me.  He is so supportive, I don't know what I would do without him.  So wish me luck!  I'll keep everyone posted on how it goes!

Lazy Saturdays

I've lost two followers this week, which is a lot when you only have 35.  Sorry for being so lame. I do appreciate everyone that reads my blog and leaves me comments, y'all are great!

I am being lazy today.  Really, really lazy.  I need to snap out of it, but all I feel like doing is bumming around.  And catching up on some dvr, you know important things.  I thought about helping John in the yard, but it's like 87 degrees outside and that just doesn't sound appealing to me.  I wouldn't mind being outside if we had a pool, or if we were going to the beach.  But no pool or beach today, so no hanging outside for Lauren.

Well, I have to get back to my lovely, lazy Saturday.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Ps- Alex is joining the big girl world today and graduating from college!  Yay Alex, can't wait to celebrate being an adult with you haha!

Slightly Overwhelmed

When did my life get so overwhelming?  I feel like I am so busy with work and school and what little free time I have left is spent on wedding stuff.  I don't have time to do a lot of the things I really enjoy doing.  Like blogging, or reading, or sending emails to bffs.  So right now I'm making time.  I have about 10 other things I should be doing right now, but they can wait.  It will all still be there after I do a blog post and send an email or two.

So, what's been going on in my life you might be wondering....

I just completed the most difficult task in school that I have ever been given.  I understood that grad school would be a challenge, but I didn't actually process that until this term.  So far it has kept me very busy and I have done a whole lot of writing, but that's to be expected.  And then I had to take Governmental Budgets & Financial Management.  Major stress involved, but I made it through with a B and I couldn't be happier. I have one more final to take and then a week off before classes start again.  Only four classes left for my masters and one on top of that for a certificate.  So by the end of the year I will have a masters in Public Administration and a graduate certificate in Government Contracting.  Not too shabby for the ripe old age of 25 (I'm not 25 yet, but will be by the time this is over)

John is in a wedding today, so this week has been full of wedding festivities.  And I must admit, I have had a lot of fun.  Wednesday night was the bachelorette party and most of Thursday was spent paying for the night before.  But it also involved the spa and naps and the rehearsal dinner.  The bride gave me a goody bag with lots of fun stuff and a piece of paper saying that Mockingjay had been preordered for me.  I am SO excited!  And today is the wedding.  I'm in charge of making sure John doesn't destroy his white shirt somehow before the ceremony.  If you knew John, you would understand that this is no easy task.

That's all I have for now.  Happy Friday all!