Things I’m Loving Friday #201

The weekend is here and I am READY FOR IT. We have zero plans this evening but our weekend kicks up a notch on Saturday when our friends Kevin and Chandra will be staying with us on Saturday and Sunday night! They were some of the first friends we made when we moved to Charlotte and we were so bummed when they moved away a little more than a year ago. Chandra actually got pregnant not long after they moved and gave birth to a sweet little boy in February and I cannot wait to meet him!!! I’ll be sure to recap our weekend adventures on the blog next week but until then, let’s stick to the usual around here and dive into my weekly Things I’m Loving Friday blog post.

As always, please feel free to join me and share a little bit about something you’re loving in the comments section of this post.

Have a fantastic weekend!

Things I’m Loving Friday

Simply Balanced Watermelon Sparkling Water (+ Stainless Steel Straws)

I am low-key worried that the watermelon flavor of Target’s Simply Balanced sparkling water is a seasonal summer thing, so I’ve been buying a case of it every time I pop into Target these days. It’s so refreshing and I’m also a huge sucker for the beautiful turquoise slim can and minimal design. Just call me a marketer’s dream! I also love the sparkling black cherry flavor and actually first purchased these cans when I was shopping for drinks to have on hand for my friend Carrie’s baby sprinkle back in July. They’re pretty, refreshing and a great alternative to soda when you want something flavorful and fizzy.

Oh! And I also love the stainless steel straw you see in my can in the above picture! I bought a pack of the straws months ago (before I discovered my beloved Koffie Straw) and was hoping to use them in my morning coffee. Apparently I wasn’t bright enough to realize that hot coffee + stainless steel = HOT STRAW… So now these straws are my go-to cold beverage straws and they’re great!

Strength Train Together

Yesterday morning I finally got around to trying Strength Train Together, a barbell-based strength class offered at a bunch of different YMCAs in the area. It’s been on my radar for months, mainly because what I heard about the format reminded me a lot of BodyPump and I’ve been a huge fan of BodyPump for years. The class was awesome and flew by and while I really liked it and would absolutely go back, it was impossible for me not to compare it to BodyPump which still has my heart. The room was completely slammed so clearly the class has a huge following and I loved the way it delivered a total body strength workout in only 50 minutes. I felt like the class was lacking some of the excitement of BodyPump (this doesn’t have anything to do with the instructor who taught my class because she was awesome) and I attribute this to BodyPump’s ability to consistently select great music that makes me want to dig deep during any given class. I missed some of those awesome jams yesterday!! Buuuut, when I strip away the BodyPump comparison, I can only say good things about this class. It felt like a great workout for people of all different fitness levels and the pace was easy to follow without feeling boring or overwhelming. I’ll definitely be back!

Beneath A Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan

My love for historical fiction (specifically WWII historical fiction) meant I couldn’t resist downloading this book on my Kindle when I scanned the summary after it popped up as a recommended read for me. The book is based on the true story of Pino Lella, an Italian teenager who enlisted as a German soldier at the urging of his parents to help ensure his safety. Pino ended up as a spy for the Allies during his assignment as the personal driver for Hitler’s left hand in Italy, General Hans Leyers. I am only about a third of the way through but already super into this one and cannot wait to get in bed early tonight and continue reading. The book has fantastic reviews on both GoodReads and Amazon, so I’m hoping it will end as great as it’s beginning.

What’s for Sale? With a View on Netflix

Keep this show on your radar if you love shows like House Hunters and basically any kind of reality TV show that lets you peek into another person’s home. Ryan discovered this show on Netflix a while back and we’ll occasionally put it on at the end of the day when we don’t want to commit to a long show (episodes are around 20 minutes) but still want to watch something we both enjoy. It’s great because it’s the kind of show you can talk about while you watch it because you don’t really need to pay attention. It’s also oddly calming because the focus of the show is on homes with views that are absolutely stunning and it’s fun to see different areas of North America that are absolutely gorgeous.

Around the Web

Food: 3-Ingredient Sweet Potato Pizza Crust / How To Build a Nourishing Bowl / Buffalo Cauliflower Wings / Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

Fitness: 20 Minute Home Cardio Barre Workout / 300 Rep Workout / Sprint + Bodyweight Leg Day Workout

Extras: You Can Have Hard Days (Love Lindsay’s post following my post about sharing one of “those” days) / Living In Charlotte (Jen’s breakdown of what it’s like to live in Charlotte is a great resource for anyone considering living here)

Friday Flashbacks

Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Fudge (A low-sugar way to enjoy a rich and creamy sweet treat. Simple to make and a great way to satisfy your sweet tooth, each piece of fudge contains a punch of protein, too!)