22 Minute Hard Corps {Review}

Posted on May 31, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Happy Tuesday, ya’ll! I am ill ill ill and it is no fun. Working in a restaurant has exposed me to so many germs that I’ve now been sick twice in two months..and I haven’t been sick in practically two … Continue reading →

Catching Up

Posted on May 30, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Oh hey there! And a happy Monday to you! This will just be a quick, photo-heavy post to recount what we’ve been up to lately! Monday: It was a holiday here, so we all hung out and stayed pretty low … Continue reading →

From the Week

Posted on May 6, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Happy Friday, everyone! This week has been fun, busy, boring and sad. Is that even possible? Ha! Work has been going really well (YAY!) and a lot of the home projects Tyler has been working on have really been progressing (DOUBLE YAY!). Gonna try to lay off the extreme detailing of the week and just focus on some highlights. And Wes-picture overload, of course..

Monday was so nice out. Tyler stayed home from work to continue working on installing the new flooring and my mom, Wes and I tried to enjoy as much of the sun as possible.

When we needed a break from the heat, we headed to the basement to work on an art project! Let’s just use the word ‘project’ verrrry loosely. It was more like freak-out-about-being-naked-and-having-paint-all-over-us mode. Followed by a messy, purply bath.

I soaked up a bit more sun on the patio during Wes’s afternoon nap…as if that was a chore.

Tuesday was another day to be outside as much as possible. Our backyard is pretty crummy with itchy grass and lots of bugs, so we mainly hang out on the front patio. Plus, there’s lot of renovation debris hanging out in the back too. Yuck.

In lieu of a morning nap, I took Wes for an early walk. It was a good way to wake up my legs before getting my workout done for the day too.

Wes helped grandma pack some of her stuff..

And we ran some errands before I had to head to work. PS: black pants in warm weather is just so stupid.

Wednesday Wes was able to start crawling around on some of the new flooring. It’s so hard to keep him contained while all this work is being done..I can’t wait for it to be over! His breakfasts are usually eaten in the living room because he likes to play around then have a bite here and there. Lately, he has been eating an entire banana with his breakfast each morning. #bigboy

We were going to head to Wild Rose Brewery for lunch, but I called ahead and they didn’t have highchairs. Boo. Instead, we headed to Craft and enjoyed a yummy lunch and a round of drinks.

Then it was time to drop grandma off at the airport. I’m not even going to get in to how many tears were shed once she went through customs. On a happy note, we did get to have her here for 3 whole weeks and Wes was just smitten with her the entire time.

Wes seemed to be able to resume with normal everyday activities, but I was in a fog for the rest of the day. Boo.

Thursday started with an early morning wakeup. Can you believe it’s been so long since I’ve had to set my alarm on my phone that I actually forgot how to do it? I wanted to get my workouts in before Wes woke up and even though it was rough getting started, I did it! I’m finishing up week 5 of 22 Minute Hard Corps and while I enjoy the workouts, I’m starting to get the itch to change it up with maybe some Insanity or 21 Day Fix EXTREME. Soon!

Sidenote–> May’s promotions are pretty sweet. Insanity Max:30 and Cize Challenge Packs. Shaun T is my favorite instructor- and I’ve loved all of his programs that I’ve tried so far. Message me if you’re interested and I’d be happy to send you more info. jennifer(dot)L(dot)Linton(at)gmail(dot)com.

As soon as the rain died down a bit, we walked over to the library. It proved to be a great idea for the day’s activity since Wes seemed to be interested in just about everything there. He looked pretty slick too. Gonna be a ladies man!

Then of course there was a margarita to be had. For Cinco de Mayo obviously.

Before I check out for the weekend, I just wanted to announce the winner of the Grapple Toy Tether giveaway….it’s Alison! Congrats 🙂

Weekender {Baby, Fitness, Beer}

Posted on May 2, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Well, it’s been a pretty unproductive weekend over here. I’m hoping with the upswing of better weather this week, we’ll have more on our agenda in the coming days!

Friday: We didn’t get out of the house until after lunch. It was really only to head to the mall and return some stuff…so nothing majorly fun. Womp. Wes was a grumpy mister- he really doesn’t like being in the stroller especially when it’s not moving at a constant, rapid pace.

He fought against an afternoon nap, so he was going a bit stir crazy just about the time I had to leave for work. Pro: I didn’t have to deal with a grump baby for a couple of hours. Con: I left my mom to deal with it and felt a bit bad. Ha! Tyler is still chugging away at the multiple home projects (not jealous of that, either).

We didn’t really plan out dinner, so I threw together a bacon grilled cheese sandwich before heading off to work.

Work went pretty well, until I noticed at the end of my shift that I made a big mistake with some cash. It didn’t negatively impact my employment or anything, but I felt pretty crummy about it. Luckily, my boss also felt bad about the mixup and bought me a beer before I headed home.

Saturday: We had a pretty good morning- lots of floor time and snuggles. After breakfast, my mom, Wes and I headed to a used kid’s sale and scored quite a few clothing items for only $5. Only downer was that we were there while it was Wes’s nap time so he was a lovely mix of grumpy and sleepy. He ended up going down really easy once we got back and I was able to take the dogs for a nice long walk.

My mom was able to get some work done too. We have a makeshift sweatshop set up in the guest bedroom so my mom can sew sew sew.

Before I left for work, I got some more snuggles.

My shift this time went a lot better. Thank goodness!

Sunday: I slept like a rock the entire night (this is a rarity lately) and didn’t even hear Wes wake up. I finally opened my eyes at 8:30. Love good sleeps like that 🙂

After Wes’s first nap and a patio picnic lunch, my mom and I walked to the grocery store for dinner stuff. Tyler has been replacing our flooring, so the main living area has been a disaster zone. We have been trying to keep Wes entertained either out of the house, or in alternate rooms- which is a bit tricky.

During his afternoon nap, I was able to walk the dogs and enjoy some sun (AND CAKE) on the patio.

Then it was time to head to the swings!

For dinner, we had chicken kebobs and pasta salad which Wes eagerly attempted to steal off my mom’s plate.

And that’s it! Weekends just fly by I tell ya.

Some other random stuff:

I’ve completed the first four weeks of 22 Minute Hard Corps and love the extra strength it’s given my core, arms and glutes. I’m excited for the remaining four weeks to see if I’ll continue to improve! (PS: If you’re interested in this program… message me for more info!)

The Grapple Toy Tether giveaway is still open! There have only been a few entries, so PLEASE check it out and enter!!! I mean, c’mon who doesn’t love free stuff??

BEERFEST is next weekend! I am judging during the Friday session and working the Saturday session. This is pretty much my dream- not only do I get to taste beer and decide which are best, but I also get to hand out beer to fellow enthusiasts! Man, I’m really loving this whole not-going-back-to-my-desk-job thing.

CIBF_SOBEYSSAFEWAY_2015

And then to top off next weekend, I have been given the best Mother’s Day gift ever–> I’ll be going on the Spirit of Alberta Tasting Tour hosted by Calgary Brewery Tours. YAASSSS. I am beyond excited for this and can’t wait to fill you guys in with more info next week! 🙂

So all this talk makes me think about how random my blogging topics are- I am obsessed with 1) my child 2) fitness, and 3) craft beer. I think it’s a pretty healthy balance (plus, it’s my life so it’s not like I have to please everyone) but then it makes it a bit confusing to readers. Right? I’ve found that my instagram is pretty much all things Wes while my Twitter is beer beer beer. And then I snap (snapchat: nutcaseinpoint) fitness type photos if I remember to take any.

I just wanted to bring it up because I am guessing the variety has caused me to lose some readers? I thrive on the connections- plus, I spend a lot of time typing these things up(!!!) and I feel like I haven’t gotten any of that lately. This might sound selfish to ask, but I LOVE hearing from you guys! And I do my best to try to engage on others blogs as well. Keyword: try.

All this blabbing and I guess all I’m trying to say is I’d love for some feedback! Anything you have to say would be appreciated. Unless it’s nasty, then keep it to yourself 🙂

Week + Weekender

Posted on April 18, 2016 by Jen @nutcaseinpoint

Whoa..talk about a wonderful and crazy week! The amazing weather hardly makes it feel like the weekend is winding down and having my mom here with us makes it even better! I didn’t get to do a recap of the week on Friday because I posted Wes’s first birthday (which I think is way more important) so let’s see what I can remember. Apologies in advance for the excessive photos 😉

Monday: From all that I can remember (eek) I got my workout done in the morning and we walked the neighborhood in the afternoon- making sure to hit the playground before returning home. Chicken caesar salads for dinner!

PS: No joke, I was doing the second week of 22 Minute Hard Corps this week and could already see the changes! My core is much stronger and my arms and butt are getting more definition! (I think I might chat about this later this week since it might also be due to some hormonal changes…man, you just never know! But these workouts feel GOOD!)

Tuesday: My mom flew in! We haven’t seen her (or my dad…but he stayed home. boo) in just over 6 months. It really is 100% no fun to live so far away from family. I crave moments where I can just have mom and dad come over for dinner or to watch Wes for an afternoon. But…it is what it is right now.

We headed straight to Costco from the airport to stock up on essentials, made homemade chicken tenders for dinner, then called it an early night. Not without a glass of wine first!

Wednesday: We considered Wednesday our ‘transition’ day. It was nice for just the three of us (me, my mom and Wes) to hang out and get into the rhythm of a slightly different weekday now that grandma was in town! We did manage to get out of the house and run a couple of errands which was nice. Lots of snacks and maybe even a couple of presents for Wes!

We had pulled pork sandwiches for dinner and hit the hay. Wes really took to grandma so fast and has been super bubbly which has been great!

Thursday: Wes has his one year appointment at 10am, but woke up so early in the morning that he was already down for a nap by 9am and I had to wake him to put him in the car to go. I hate doing that, but I knew that it was still early enough in the day that he would get a good afternoon nap in anyways.

He wasn’t too happy at the appointment and wanted me to hold him the whole time. I didn’t mind at all since I rarely get those good cuddles, but I didn’t like seeing him saddish.

We headed to the Tim Horton’s drive through on the way home for a couple of coffees and picked up a timbit for Wes since it was his birthday eve. No shocker- he gobbled it in two bites!

He was still pretty clingy the rest of the day and snuggled with grandma throughout the afternoon. Heart=melted.

Tyler picked up a pizza on the way home from work for him and my mom and I was out the door by 5:30 to attend a winemaker’s dinner at Pampas Brazilian Steakhouse (more on that later this week!)

Friday: My baby turned ONE! We celebrated just as the sun came up with balloons in his crib and he LOVED them. Poor Tyler’s alarm still hadn’t gone off yet and we were making so much noise. Whoops!

We had pancakes for his birthday breakfast (my idea, obviously) and Wes hung out with grandma to play. They even facetimed grandpa for the Happy Birthday song!

I think we walked over to the shopping center to pick up a couple of things too. It must’ve happened, because there’s photo evidence!

After his morning nap, I attempted to take his one year photos and was so excited for him to wear some new garb! Luckily, I have come across so many great small shops lately that I was able to assemble something rather last minute. I absolutely loved each piece 🙂

wesleyarlo12months

The leggings are from Baby H Designs (she made the leggings/hat Wes wore when he came home from the hospital), moccs from Posh Panda, and bow tie from Will & Co

After a somewhat successful photo session, all clothing was removed so he could enjoy his very first cupcake! I would have preferred it to be something I made myself (I am anti-any-baked-good-from-a-store-since-homemade-is-better) but I thought this was too cute to pass up when I stopped by Crave.

IMG_4688 from Jen Linton on Vimeo.

We had to take a quick bath after that because it was a bit messy and Reggie was losing his mind over all the potential frosting to lick. We opted to all stay shirtless after the fact (plus, it was warm out) and I whipped up these amazingly delicious baked chimichangas for dinner. Best part? We had leftovers which were easily wrapped up and thrown in the freezer! Edited to add: I just remembered that Wes ZONKED for nearly three hours after noshing on the cupcake. It was a great little break for me and my mom, but it made for a less fun night of trying to get him to bed…almost 9pm!

Saturday: Even though Wes went to bed so late on Friday night, he was up at 6am on Saturday. No fun for this mama because my eyes just felt heavy as bricks! I made sure to get both our breakfasts ready before getting him from his room and we hung out in the living room for a while. On one hand, early mornings are no fun because who wants to get out of bed, but on the other hand, I absolutely love those quiet morning hours with Wes when it’s just me and him….and maybe one or two of the doggies who make it out of the bedroom.

The little guy is getting more adventurous in his eating and was asking for a lot of my mom’s cereal. So cereal he got! Afterwards, he was back to sleep for almost another 3 hours! Although I didn’t want him to miss out on the gorgeous weather, I knew he needed the sleep and it was nice for us all to be able to do our own thing for a little bit.

After his nap, we spent a long time hanging out on the patio! When it’s this nice out, it’s a sin not to sit outside and enjoy it! He really loved the fresh air and looking out 🙂

Once Tyler got to a point in his renovations where he could take a break, we had cake! Well, technically only Wes had the cake. No party this year for the birthday boy (1. Because he won’t remember it, 2. Because we have no family around to come and my girlfriends all live so FAR AWAY, and 3. Because umm…isn’t cake enough??!) I sort of feel bad about it, but so long as he’s happy that’s all that matters. He really enjoyed the cake even though he really didn’t understand the concept 😉

Also, I really need to dress nice for some photos, but can’t see the point when we’re just in the house! Besides, DOG. HAIR.

Timing worked in our favor this time and he was in bed at a relatively normal time! We had lasagna for dinner and watched Ride Along 2 before getting in bed.

Sunday: I heard Wes stirring in his crib at 6am and of course he went back to sleep but I couldn’t. I laid in bed for a few minutes before getting up to start coffee, make waffles for everyone, and fix my BAE breakfast.

At 8:30 I decided to put Wes in the stroller and walk to the library to return some books and maybe stroll around the neighborhood for a bit. I was walking one of our usual loops and just before we got back to the house, he had fallen asleep. Since Layla is a barking beast when we get to the front door, I opted to keep walking throughout the neighborhood until Wes woke up. Cut to one hour later and I finally decided to just throw in the towel because my fitbit died haha.

I had him bundled in the stroller because there was still a tiny nip in the air, but by the time we were back at the house it was practically HOT out. I changed Wes and we hung out on the patio for a couple of hours..and even managed to have a picnic lunch.

I even braved to snag a few photos in our backyard. It worked out pretty decent- the grass is (dead) nice and dry from the warm weather, and there was no dog poo! I should probably mow it sometime soon, but we’re never back there. Oops.

Layla is such a great pup with Wes. He loves her so much and is always grabbing for her and hugging her and even just laying on her and she takes it all like a champ.

We came inside for a bit because it was getting a bit too warm and I took the dogs for a long walk. After coming home, Wes went down for a nap, I worked out, and finished up the laundry.

Then it was a nice naked afternoon of crawling, climbing, babbling, and giggling.