Weekend Shannies: Fall is in the air!

This weekend was quite different than the last few. It was very low key and productive, and I was able to catch up on my rest. That was glorious! Last weekend, I did not sleep well at all and was up really early both days. This past week was stressful and emotional so I did not sleep good then either. Being able to sleep in and rest some really made me feel like a new person.

Originally Marq and I were supposed to go to Myrtle Beach to meet with a national franchise that Marq is considering buying. Friday evening that fell through so we stayed here. Friday night did not consist of much, just gym. After the gym, I was tired and Marq was exhausted so we cooked dinner and just hung out at home.

Saturday morning I slept in until 11! It was so nice. When I finally woke up Marq and I took off to town to tour a tanning salon he is considering purchasing (this gets tiring) then had a bunch of errands to run. We came back from all of that around 3. My house decided to take a nap after that. Look at my lazy babies!

While they napped, I got myself prepped for the week!

After about an hour we took off to the dog park. The weather was absolutely perfection! Hello fall! We had a great time.  There was a particular Pug that took to Marq and I, we loved him! I debated on taking him home. Heh.

After the dog park we all came back home, took showers, and got ready. Marquis and I decided to go see "Prisoners". It was really good, the acting was incredible. And I love Hugh and Jake. They define sexy. It is a really long movie though. We went to the 9 o'clock showing and did not get home until after midnight. I wore my new lace top from Venus. It's sexy, I love it!

This morning I woke up and Marquis surprised me with breakfast; egg white omelet with egg whites, turkey sausage, and cheese with a side of Special K Yogurt cereal. Yum! I went to spin class at noon, normally class is 45 minutes but today it was an hour. I pushed hard and man my legs are aching! After the gym I had a lot more errands to run. My grocery shopping alone takes 3 stops. Ugh! 

Now I'm ready to make it a successful week! Food is prepped!

Tonight Marquis and I are cooked all of our chicken on the grill. I'm so glad because everything tastes so much better on the grill. I am making a side of baked beans and I also made a healthy potato salad. It's made with red potatoes and plain greek yogurt. It's packed with protein and complex carbohydrates - completely healthy for you and delicious. It's a win, win!

Now it is time for a little Sunday night relaxation!

Well, that's about it for me this weekend! Cheers!

A Season of Change...

What a week. What a life.

I feel like I have so much I want to say right now. I want to write my situation down on my blog, get out on paper, and get it out of my head. But I can't do that right now. There is a lot of uncertainty in my life and I feel a lot of hard changes coming. If there is one quote that has always stuck with me in life, it is this one:

and sometimes, a lot of times in life, I do not feel I follow this. I used too. But over the years I have transformed. I do not always like the person I have become. This probably does not make sense. Sometimes when your heart is speaking, your brain does not always translate the words and the feelings like it should. 

More soon on that. Now, back to this week.

It has been a pretty quiet and calm week. I have been battling mood highs and lows because of all the change coming forth in my job. I had a job interview yesterday. It is for the Executive Assistant/Administration Director to the CEO of a Real Estate company. The CEO is an amazing woman. She was voted one of Charlotte's 50 most influential women and CEO's, and has won many, many awards in the real estate world. She started her company from the ground a mere 7 years ago and has grown it extraordinarily. 

Yesterday was finally the interview. After completing an essay on why they should hire me followed by a personality test, I was called in for the interview.

When I went into it, I was pretty calm. I am used to interviews at this point. I have been trying on and off for a year for a new position. But in walks the CEO. She is very stern and intimidating. She knows what she wants and how she wants it done. Those are key components for a CEO so I do not know why I was surprised. 

She had a thick stack of papers in her hands. She sat down in the conference room across the table from me and dove right into asking the standard questions. They were very difficult to answer. You guys probably know how that is. Describe a time where the outcome of a specific project did not align to the clients requests and how you elected to rectify the situation. Ugh, I hate that. I'm not good at that. She asks all of those type of questions for each job I have ever held. It was not going that great. I stuttered some, did not know exactly what to say, and I was just ready to walk out of the interview. Literally in the middle of her asking those questions, just get up and walk out. But I didn't.

Next we get to the paper filled with words. Upon her reading each word, I had to rate myself a 1-6. One meaning I'm not good at all and 6 meaning that I am superstar. I was doing OK I thought and then she says the word "pragmatic". I had no idea what that meant. She did not either, really. She thought about it for a second and kind of explained it. And I believe the definition is "your ability to think logically and realistically". I could Google to verify, but who cares.

Just as I thought the interview was a complete bomb and a complete waste of an uncomfortable outfit, she says the word "ambition". 1-6? I don't think think so. I say 7. She laughs and it breaks the ice a little. She tells me I did a good job on the test. Then we get down to the basics. I get to tell her all about me, my life, and what I want. I told her how I admired her accomplishments so much and I want to strive to be like that. I also talked a little about her company since I did my research and how I would fit and be able to help her grow her business even more.

Gosh, being an interview is the biggest sales pitch of ones life, ha.

After an hour and a half, we close our conversation. She has had the job I interviewed for posted for a month and a half. She did this because she wants to ensure she finds the right person. She also added that she deleted thousand's of Resume's sent to her because they did not follow the directions on the job posting. You could not just send them your Resume, you had to write the essay on why you would be a good fit then attach your Resume. She told me to set up reference appointments with each of my references so she could call them. She then added that as long as the references went well, she would do a criminal and credit background check, and be in touch.

My current supervisor told me he just got off the phone with her and she told him that he provided one of the best references she has ever heard. Now we wait. We will see what happens next.

Other than the interview, this week has been usual. Working and the gym. Marquis and I are leaving for Myrtle Beach on Saturday because we have a meeting with a franchise he is considering buying. It will be a short trip though, we are coming back Sunday. 

How have you guys been this week? 

The Hump Day Blog Hop! (2)

Hey guys! I am so excited you have come over. We are halfway through the week and the hump day camel is too freaking cool, so I decided to start a weekly blog hop to celebrate.

It has been a busy week over in my world. I am still working (for now) and applying for jobs until my fingers fall off every night. I decided to take it a step further as well, and I have been researching and emailing companies just to get my name out there and ask to keep my Resume on file. It can't hurt, right?

Anyways, this is a little different than a link up. To participate, simply add your blog link. There is no required entry or anything like that. This is about networking, making new friends, and finding new blogs.

All I ask:

1) "The Hump Day" blog hop button button be displayed anywhere on your blog page or a specific entry with a link back to me or the weekly co-host.

2) You don't have to follow me, but in the words of Blake Shelton: it'd sure be cool if ya did.

3) But please follow the co-host. I love helping and promoting these amazing women in the blog world!

4) Mingle with your fellow Bloggers. 

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<a href="http://www.fitnessblondie.blogspot.com" title="The Hump Day Blog Hop"><img src="http://i1285.photobucket.com/albums/a593/fitnessblondiel/humpday_zps418f63f6.jpg" alt="The Hump Day Blog Hop" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Please help me welcome this weeks co-host, Hilary @ Young Texan Mama!


She is young, she is Texan, and she is a Mama. You would have never guessed, would you? It sounds like the perfect blog to check out to me! Also, she taught herself how to sew when she was only 14 and has never broken a bone. Make sure you go over to her little space on the internet, say hi, and follow along. She is a great friend.

Weekend Shannies: Good food, good shopping, and the best mom!

It has been the best weekend. I am heartbroken it is coming to an end. But I feel refreshed and ready to take on the week. As all of my Blogger friends and readers know, I have some big life changes coming up. Mama has been staying with us since Thursday night and we have a had a great time.

Friday, it was a busy day at work. I worked out during my lunch so I could go home and get ready for a mother/daughter date. Mama and I went to our favorite spot; "The Melting Pot" for fondue!

"Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels... unless it is fondue!"

After, we had a little bubbly.

Can I interest you in a bottle?

Saturday, we were early risers. We had shopping on our minds. We fueled up on Ihop and hit some of our favorite and regular spots that we love to go to when Mama comes to Charlotte to stay.

I found most of my shopping goodies at my favorite place in the whole world; "Ulta". My big find: Urban Decay's Vice 2.

Okay, so I have a story: I was reading Tara's blog (Fabulous But Evil) and I saw her review on Urban Decay's Vice 2. I knew I HAD to have it. I had my heart set. So when Mama and I were out running errands, I ran into Ulta like a crack head to find the Vice 2. Well, I could not find it. I finally asked a vendor, who grabbed a manager. The manager told me she had a sample I could look at, but they cannot start selling the palette until the 26th. As crazy as this sounds, I had tears in my eyes. I was SO disappointed. I know that sounds so crazy, but I love makeup. So then the manager says she can tell I really want it, so she went into the stock room and pulled one for me! I was SO thankful!

I also found really fun nail colors. I love China Glaze!

The rest of Saturday was pretty uneventful. I hit the gym after shopping all day and it was hard. Mom's MS started acting up and she felt bad so we stayed in and enjoyed watching Ghost shows on the Bio channel. 

Today. Sigh... today looks fun, but I have to tell you guys, it wasn't... at first. I slept horrible last night. I had really bad nightmares. The nightmares effected me so bad that I felt sick to my stomach. I will not go into detail, but one of the dreams was that Marty was killed. I was up and down all night. Marquis and I finally woke up at 7:30. We went and got breakfast then went up to Concord to the Charlotte Motor Speedway for a car show. It was a blast, but we walked in the blazing sun for hours. My body was aching by the time we left. 

I was in such a rotten mood after. I slept horrible, the nightmares were still weighing on me, and my body was aching. Marquis and I argued over the air we were breathing. You would think he and I were brother and sister, not an engaged couple as much as we were arguing. It as PMS on steroids. We managed to get groceries without killing each other, then I took a nap. 

When I woke up, I felt better, but I wanted to drink. I haven't had a drink in like two weeks so I wanted a Margarita. And what goes good with a blackberry Margarita? Mexican food!

After we had a delicious dinner, Mama wanted to go to Target one last time since she is leaving tomorrow morning. Mama lives in my hometown, a tiny farm town in northern NC. The nearest Target is over an hour away so she does not get to go often. Me? I have 2 Target's within a 5 mile radius.

Anyways, she was able to get some goodies for herself, I bought a Batman watch for Marquis for being such a bitch today, and I got myself a planner - that includes meals, fitness, and expense planning! It was only $20, too! Take that Erin Condren! Ha. Kidding. I also found some fun Sharpies. It just felt appropriate to get Sharpies with a new planner. 

So, the main reason I bought this? My new Weight Watcher's membership. I bought a three month membership. I am not a Weight Watcher's affiliate or anything like that, but Weight Watcher's works. It really, honestly, truly does. I did it a few years and I loved it. I have been on a stand still with my weight. I managed to get off the weight from my miscarriage and emergency surgery from earlier this year, but I need a kick. So I am doing the online program. Aside from wanting to switch things up, I have a lot of chaos going on with life right now. I am leaving my job in a few weeks, applying for new jobs, interviewing (I have one this Wednesday, please a say a prayer), and on top of all of that, Marquis is still starting new businesses. We are literally all over the place. I am working and interviewing this week, and this weekend Marquis and I are driving down to Myrtle Beach for a franchise meeting. Life is nonstop so Weight Watcher's will help me stay on track so I do not fall apart during these next transitions in our lives I don't know about you guys, but when I am so busy and scattered brained, the first aspect of my life to suffer is healthy eating.

Let's make it a great week. I can't wait to read what all you guys have been up to this weekend. Don't forget to join me for "The Hump Day" blog hop on Wednesday! Our first week was a success, so lets make this week even better!