It’s a new year and it looks like Friday Favorites might just be sticking around! I realized last year that these posts were one of my favorite ways to share the faith, fitness and fun things that I love – it’s the perfect combination of everything this site is about. But here’s where you come in.
The only way I know what kind of things to keep sharing is by hearing from YOU. Is there a category you’d like me to include? Do you get most excited about deals, apparel, fitness, or faith items? Would you like me to include some non-shopping favorites, like answering one of your questions about my favorite color, number, podcast, song, snack, {insert item here}? I really would love to hear from you, so if you wouldn’t mind leaving a comment and answering those few little questions, I would SUPER appreciate it!
On to the favorites! Affiliate links are included, at no additional cost to you if you click through them. If you happen to make a purchase it just helps me keep things running around here (and I’m so grateful). xoxo
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– You guys, I’m so excited about this! If 2016 has you facing some change that you aren’t exactly excited about, I would love to invite you to join the 2016 Change Challenge. This free email series offered by (in)courage will bring you 3 weeks of encouragement and inspiration from “Girl Meets Change” author Kristen Strong. Plus, each Thursday Kristen & I will hang out live on Blab with a few friends to talk about change – and you’re invited to join us! Free emails. Free live chats. Awesome encouragement. You can to receive the emails (starting Monday!) and you can read more about the challenge, and the chats, over on Kristen’s blog. And if you’d like to grab a copy of Kristen’s book (optional, but encouraged!) you can do that here. Oh and join us TODAY at noon EST on Blab and watch us figure out how to use it, learn more about the challenge, hear who might be joining us for the weekly chats, and ask questions!
Hammer & Chisel – I’m nearing the end of week 5 of this 60 day workout program and I am in LOVE. It’s one of the most challenging workouts I’ve ever done, but having Matt doing it too has brought out a little competitive nature in me. When I started my first Beachbody workout last year I never would have imagined that I would be able to survive something this intense – and the fact that not only am I surviving, I’m getting stronger (we just had to buy all new weights because ours were too light). Strong is a good feeling!
– I realized last year that one of my favorite ways to build community is to invite all of YOU to join me in this faith & fitness challenges. I have met some amazing, strong, brave women who I am so honored to journey along side – and I can’t wait to see who God brings into my life this year! For our next challenge, which starts January 18th, we’re going to spend 21 days together reading through Rick Warren’s “Live Your Calling: What on Earth am I Here For?” free YouVersion plan. Oh and you know, we’ll be working out, eating clean, and cheering for one another. There’s that, too. We went with the name “new YOU resolutions” because we wanted this to be something that went beyond just fitness and lasted longer than January. These challenges are about kickstarting the best kind habits, the lifestyle changes that will ultimately result in the healthiest hearts and bodies so we can do the work God is calling us to do. Most of us will be doing 21 Day Fix, but if you’d rather pick up a PiYo, CIZE, or Hammer & Chisel challenge pack instead, I want you to choose the workout program that is right for YOU, because I want you to have fun and stick with it! You can sign up to join the challenge here and I’ll be in touch with the links you’ll need to get started!
Refit Shirt – You guys know I love Refit, and their new line of apparel is the BEST. How perfect is this shirt? I only wish it came in a tank top so I could rock it at Zumba. You can check out Refit (if there is a class near you GO TO IT IMMEDIATELY) and shop their entire line here. And be sure to subscribe to their YouTube channel while you’re there, so you don’t miss any of their fantastic videos! I think they also just released an “on demand” feature that sounds pretty amazing.
Eye Found It Card Game – Part of Madi’s bedtime routine includes playing a game, and to be honest, I’ve gotten pretty tired of Frozen bingo and Doc McStuffins “Spot It.” We already owned the Eye Found It board game, but it was way too long to play before bedtime – and then we found the card game version at Target. Everyone gets 5 cards that have scenes from popular Disney movies. You flip a card to indicate what it is you’re supposed to find on your cards, and the first person who finds it and shows the other players gets to lay down that card (the back of the card tells the group what to find next). The first person to get rid of all their cards wins. It’s such a fun and easy-to-learn game that we even played a few rounds at various family Christmas parties! For an adults-only game, we really love The Game of Things. While you could play it with kids who are only enough to read and write, it’s definitely more fun without them!
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Those are the favorites this week! Be sure to comment and answer those questions above so I know how to best direct these posts this year.
