Christmas at the Beach

Oh hey! I am betting your blog feeds are all filled with 2015 this & that, so you're probably surprised to see Christmas 2014, well, I am pretty much on this really bad procrastination kick (I'm working on it though) so I am dedicating my first post of the New Year to what were my last photos of last year... seemed smart in my brain ;) So here ya go... a little recap of all things our wonderfully relaxing Christmas vacation at the beach was...

The Beach House//

Mom got there earlier in the week before the Hubs and I and the rest of the fam got there and decorated the whole place.  It felt so homey and cozy! It was the perfect place to spend our first Christmas away from Georgia and our first Christmas without my brother... For those of you who are new to the blog we lost my brother last July to a drug overdose.  This was our first Christmas ever without him & there was no way we could imagine spending it the same way we had all the years before.  The beach was our favorite place to be as a family and it just made sense to be there this year for Christmas.  

Very cool sidetone: When mom got to the beach she walked out back on the porch and saw dolphins... she knew it was my brother there in spirit saying "Hey, mom! Merry Christmas!" :)

Our favorite place to hangout - the amazing porches (yes, plural!) the one of the bed swing was right off of our bedroom! We did our reading and bible studying out there.  The beach is absolutely our place of peace and restoration.  

Every year my family always gets a new ornament related to something that we either did, enjoyed, or a place we went to.  This year instead of doing a memory tree with all of our ornaments we did a memory tree for just my brother... It was beautiful and it was so much fun to look at all of the ornaments because everyone reminded us of another great memory of him.  The top left ornament is from The Davis Direction Foundation, a local foundation promoting Heroin/Opiate Addiction Awareness efforts. I picked some of my favorite ornaments- Continuing clockwise: me and my brother- one of my favorite pics of us, then a fish bc he used to be obsessed with fishing in middle school, a hot wheels car because to say he was obsessed with cars as a kid is an understatement,  he also loved basketball and played all of the time, and the final is a red tennis shoe that says " I believe I can fly"- mom and I found it at Hobby Lobby this year and HAD to buy it because he LOVED shoes (I'm pretty sure he had more tennis shoe than me!), he loved the color red, and he is flying with the angels now :) 

everything about it was just perfect!

My ornament this year ;)

It's no secret mom & I have a slight Starbucks obsession... this tree is decked out in our Starbucks ornaments we buy every year!

What We Did// 

Puzzles, Puzzles, and MORE puzzles!

Walks on the beach with this handsome guy :)

On Christmas Eve we lit candles in remembrance of my brother.

The obligatory Christmas morning family photo in matching pajamas, of course.

We also had bonfires on the beach at night - it was the first time we had ever done that- so much fun!!

What I Wore//

(On Christmas day) 

the rest of the days I rocked pajamas and workout gear

Piko Top: Sage Clothing {exact}

Black Skinnies: J.Lo via Kohls

Boots: Target- ON SALE! {exact}

Christmas Scarf: gifted (from Kohl's)

yep, can't have outfit pics taken without a little silly face action!

What We Ate//

Breakfast//

Sweet Potato Waffles & Bacon 

French Toast w/ Cranberry Sauce & Gluten- free Sausage Cheese Muffins (used gluten free Bisquick)

Pumpkin Oatmeal Casserole & Bacon (Clean Eating)

Lunch//

Grilled Chicken BLT Salad

Grilled Chicken, Bacon, Tomato, Spinach, Sunflower seeds, hard boiled egg, balsamic dressing

Christmas Dinner Leftover Salad

Ham, cranberry sauce, tomatoes, avocado, hard boiled egg, spinach lettuce, & balsamic dressing

Dessert//

Fruit Cookie Cake 

Note: we substituted vanilla greek yogurt for cream cheese & sugar in recipe- it was delish!!

Oh and yes we ate dinner every night, but this girl was hungraaay and totally forgot to take dinner pics! oops! 

Our Last Day//

And.... for your enjoyment... just so you know who I get my weirdness from ;)

As always, thanks for reading! I hope you had a wonderful holiday season! 

Here is to a VERY belated Happy New Years! 

~ xoxo ~

Danielle

FitnessFiles: Become a Clean Eating Bombshell

Well, we are smack dab in the middle of the holiday season and with all of the New Year's Resolutions being made - I thought a few tips on how to eat clean might be in order... I think you will find it really isn't as hard or overwhelming as it can sometimes seem! 

Follow these tips & you, my dear, are on your way to becoming a 

Clean Eating Bombshell!

1. Don’t be afraid of good fats.  

Fact: Fat is absolutely necessary for the body to function.  It is a great source to fuel your body & it can help keep you feeling full.  Avoid hydrogenated fats, oxidized fats, and processed fats, like in fried foods and packaged desserts/ snacks.  Instead, reach for nuts, avocados, and fish oil and cook with coconut oil and olive oil. 

2. Stay Hydrated. More water, please!  

I talk about the importance of water all the time but it really is key to keeping your body running optimally.  Staying hydrated helps you flush out toxins and absorb nutrients. 

Tip: Avoid drinking too much bottled water and instead invest in BPA free water bottles and fill them up with filtered water.  You can even add some delicious fruit to make it even tastier ;) #fancy

3. Eat more veggies & fruit.  

They are stocked full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.  They are also the best source of carbohydrates since they are not processed.  Eating carbs isn’t bad, eating them from over processed sources like chips, bread, and refined sources is. 

Tip: When grocery shopping stick to the perimeter of the store (where a majority of the unprocessed foods are) and avoid the aisles as much as possible!

4. Stay away from the fake food. 

Easy rule of thumb: Avoid anything “low-fat” & “sugar-free!” They are loaded with artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives.  I promise after a week or so, those things will not even taste good!

5. Listen to your body.  

I saved the best (and most important) for last…you will find a zillion different diets, workouts, advice, etc… but you know what? At the end of the day no diet is exactly perfect for every.single.person. LISTEN TO YOUR BODY.  Are you training for a marathon? Well, your diet will look very different from mine.  Why? Because you are expelling way more energy than me for much longer durations.  Chances are if you are eating what I am, you will feel sluggish, tired, and exhausted. If I ate what you should be eating, I would probably blow up like a balloon and feel miserable. Red meat make you feel nauseous? Okay, don’t eat it and Paleo is probably not the diet for you… Do raw veggies make your stomach feel uncomfortable & gassy? Then a vegetarian diet probably isn’t going to last too long for you. 

Bottom line: Explore different diets - what works for one person may not work for you.  Stay connected to how your body feels and adjust accordingly.  It is a process, but when you start eating what is right for your body, you will start to notice a significant difference in how you feel, your energy levels, and your performance.

{Do you have any clean eating tips I didn’t touch on here? Share in the comments below – I would love to hear them!}

Looking for daily health tips & fitness motivation? 

Follow me on Facebook- Danielle Dunn Fitness

~ xoxo ~

Danielle

FitnessFiles: 3 Day Cleanse// A Review

Okay, so some of you may know I did my very first cleanse last week… It was only 3 days, but here is my *HONEST* opinion, day to day experience, results, and thoughts… (spoiler…it was not rainbows and butterflies for this girl!)

Day One//

Workout: PiYo Strength Intervals

Meal Plan: The Fiber Sweep for breakfast was not my fave, the consistency was gross to me, but I suffered through. The meal plan consists of Shakeology, Vanilla Fresh Shakes, veggies, fruit, LOTS of tea (for me at least), even more water, & healthy fats.  It does NOT consist of coffee, processed foods, or meat. Cravings: none. J

Mood: Overall, I was totally fine.  Plenty of energy, no crazy cravings, and I even lived with NO coffee! It was a success in my book!

Day Two//

Workout: None

Meal Plan: same as the day before; my coffee cravings were crazyyy so my tea consumption was up like 1000% percent!  My go to foods were blueberries, carrots, kale, and avocado.  Cravings: coffee & meat!

Mood: Sluggish & tired.  I really had no energy (sadly, might be from no coffee) I also felt super bloated, which was discouraging since I was so stinkin’ hungraaay!

Day Three// Last Day!

Workout: PiYo Sweat

Meal Plan: same as day before; the consistency of the fiber sweep in the am was less than desirable, not sure I could drink that one more day!  The Vanilla Fresh Shakes were really good though, especially with blueberries or strawberries mixed in! Go to foods were carrots, blueberries, watermelon, and sunflower seeds & lots more tea! My chocolate Shakeology was def the meal I looked forward to most each day!  Cravings: Burger, coffee, &  feta cheese.

Mood: Super Grouchy & tired & even more bloated! I thought working out would help… I was def a little less grouchy, but still really tired!

Okay so my 3 main takeaways were:

1.     I def have a coffee addiction.  If there was any question before, this was confirmed by the super bad headache that set in on Day 2.  You would be proud to know I have decided to limit my Starbucks consumption to 2 times per week! And only 1 cup of coffee allll day! Baby steps, over here, baby steps.

2.     Cleanses are really freakin hard! I honestly thought because we eat so clean on a daily basis already, the three days would be smooth sailing.  But my body missed coffee and meat, especially when you still have to cook yummy dinner for the Hubs and smell delicious coffee in the morning… a cruel kind of torture for this girl!

3.     No matter the moodiness & bloating I felt on days 2 & 3 the results come day 4 were TOTALLY worth it! I felt so much leaner and getting some amazing coffee in me first thing in the morning was just amazing! I took this picture below at night after eating a burger and drinking a big ol’ glass of vino! Usually, by the end of the day I don’t feel nearly as lean as when I wake up, but since the cleanse I have felt much more lean, my stomach is super sensitive to bad foods (aka processed foods) which is great bc I just don’t even want to taste any cookies or anything! Kind of cool heading into holidays, I feel my willpower is stronger already! J

Have you ever done a cleanse?  Which one did you do? Did you suffer as much as me?! or maybe I am just a baby...that is possible!

For more info on my 3 day cleanse, check it out here: 3 Day Refresh Packages & Video

 If you are interested in trying the cleanse I have a group starting right after New Years Day, so if you want to kick off the New Year in high gear, message me at Danielle Dunn Fitness on Facebook OR email me at danielleadams28 (at) gmail (dot) com