I’m writing this post with tears streaming down my cheeks and the biggest knot in my stomach… because sweet Caroline is gone.

She crossed the rainbow bridge on Monday, and devastated is an understatement. She hasn’t been doing well for a couple of years – she’d have a rough week and always seem to pull through – but knowing that it was coming didn’t make it any easier. In some ways, it’s made it even harder and more heartbreaking.

We got Caroline from a Cavalier Kings Charles rescue when Liv was a toddler. We drove to Phoenix, where they had multiple cavaliers running around from the puppy mill in Arkansas that had been shut down, and Caroline was the one Liv had to have. She was the smallest, most timid one, hiding in the corner, shaking.

“Are you sure you want this one?”

“Yes, I want this one.”

We drove her home and gave her lots of snuggles and food. For the first year or so, she remained timid, yet extremely sweet (even while receiving some occasional harassment from Bella). When we adopted Caroline, she was used to doing everything in a crate outside: it’s where she ate, did her business, and also birthed multiple rounds of puppies, as she was a young mama dog for the puppy mill.

When we brought her home, she had never walked on grass.

While she was still recovering from everything she endured, we quickly learned about Caro and her two favorite things: sleep and belly rubs. The girl could snore, too. She had the loudest, most satisfying snores, and it made my heart happy that she was able to fully relax after the horrible first couple of years of her life.

She rode in the wagon with Liv on our daily walks,

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Sharing my review (so far!) of the Integrative Health Practitioner certification and my thoughts on the program. I’m so thrilled to be partnering with Dr. Stephen Cabral on a few podcast episodes, and he also generously gifted access to my level 1 and level 2 certification programs. In this post, I’ll be sharing an update on the course and my thoughts on level one now that I’ve finished. If you’d like to join me as a study buddy, head here and use the code FITNESSISTA for $100 off Level 1 and $250 off levels 1 and 2. 

Helloooooo. Happy Monday. I hope you had a lovely weekend. We’re here enjoying our last moments with Caro before we have to say our goodbyes later today 🙁

For today’s post, I wanted to share an updated review of my experience with the Integrative Health Practitioner course and how I plan to use this certification. I recently finished level one and have started level two. I’ve loved diving into these modules and know that it will be an entirely new layer to my coaching.

There have been times when I’ve worked with a nutrition client online and wished I could suggest specific labs (it’s NOT in the scope of practice for a nutrition coach or personal trainer to do this. All you can do is refer out to an RD or doctor). I’ve added other members to my coaching team who are able to run these tests, but as my online practice continues to grow, I’ve wanted to be able to learn how to do all of this myself.

Integrative Health Practitioner Certification 

What is the IHP certification?

The Integrative Health Practitioner certification was created by Dr. Stephen Cabral. If you’re not familiar with his work, Dr. Stephen Cabral is a Board Certified Doctor of Naturopathy and founder of the EquiLife & the Integrative Health Practitioner Institute, and Author of the International Best-Selling Book, The Rain Barrel Effect. After almost 20 years and over 600,000 pages of research study completed, dozens of certifications in the natural health field, over a quarter of a million private client sessions, and a doctoral degree in Naturopathy – Dr. Cabral‘s knowledge, experience, and passion are at the top of his field.

I’ve been following him on Instagram for a couple of years and recently had him as a guest on the podcast. I’d looked at this certification

Hey hey! How are ya? Happy weekend!! What do you have going on? We have a friend’s Air Force retirement party and a soccer team outing. I’m also hoping we can catch a family hike. I hope you have an amazing weekend!

Some exciting news: I finished my Integrative Practitioner Level One Certification! Aaaand I’ve already started on Level Two 🙂 I have so much to say about the program so far, so I’ll definitely do an updated post, but if you have any questions you’d like to me to answer, please leave them in the comments section. I’ll also be restructuring my 1:1 coaching options, so if you know you’re interested, you can apply and get on my wait list here.

A little Caro update:

Caro saw the vet last Friday and has congenital heart failure and her little body was full of fluid. She started a couple of meds, including a diuretic, and they’ve made a huge difference. Unfortunately, she’s still not eating much. She was eating if I hand fed her, but now she’ll only eat every few bites or so. The vet is coming again this afternoon, so we’ll see what she has to say.

It’s time for the weekly Friday Faves party. This is where I share some of my faves from the week and around the web. I always love to hear about things you’re loving, too, so please shout out the good stuff in the comments section below!

Read, watch, listen:

What ideal blood glucose might look like, and the value of using a CGM.

How to reprogram your brain to make healthy choices.

Check out this week’s podcast episode here, especially if you feel like you’re in a cooking rut!

Fashion + beauty:

Amazon fashion finds! I was so pumped when Amazon invited me to join their fashion program and picked out a few new fashion-y things to enjoy for the month. They have SO many awesome picks for fall (at amazing prices) and you can’t beat the Prime shipping. I find myself ordering more fashion and household items from Amazon because they’ll get here so quickly.

Here’s what I picked out this month:

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Hi friends! I’m so excited to be chatting with Laney Schwartz from Life Is But A Dish on the podcast today.

Here’s what we’re talking about:

– Her tips for getting out of a cooking rut

– Meal prep tips and kids’ lunch ideas

– Her go-to ingredients and staples

and so.much.more.

110: Getting out of a cooking rut + meal prep tips with Laney Schwartz

Here’s more about Laney and her background:

Laney Schwartz is an everyday mom, founder and creator behind the food blog Life Is But A Dish, and a girl who’s obsessed with food. Born and raised in Maryland, Laney now lives in Los Angeles, California with her two daughters Zoe and Ava, her husband Zach, and her dog Lou. Laney is on a mission to help busy home cooks across the world gain confidence in the kitchen, create simple and delicious meals and cook without being tied to a recipe. After 7+ years of blogging Laney has over 600 reliable recipes on her website, all using simple everyday ingredients. Laney created a program called Cook with Confidence to help the overwhelmed and anxious home cook learn how to build foundational cooking skills for life. She has successfully moved over 200 students through the program, changing people’s relationships with the kitchen.

Connect with her on Instagram and check out her course, Cooking with Confidence. HIRL listeners can get $100 off at this link!

Resources from this episode:

I love love love the meals from Sakara Life! Use this link and the code XOGINAH for 20% off their meal delivery and clean boutique items. This is something I do once a month as a lil treat to myself and the meals are always showstoppers.

Get 15% off Organifi with the code FITNESSISTA. I drink the green juice, red juice, gold, and Harmony! (Each day I might have something different, or have two different things. Everything I’ve tried is amazing.)

The weather is cooling down, and I’m still obsessed with my sauna blanket. It feels even BETTER when it’s chilly outside and you can use the code FITNESSISTA15 for 15% off! This is one of my favorite ways to relax and sweat it out. I find that it energizes me, helps with aches and pains, I sleep better on the days I use this, and it makes my skin glow. 

Sharing my top tips for hosting an awesome dinner party + some of my favorite cooking hacks.

Hi hi! How’s the morning going? I’m off to mass with the kids and then hitting an F45 class. I hope you have a great day, too.

For today’s post, I thought we could talk a bit about dinner party tips and cooking hacks. Please keep in mind that I’m NOT a professional (even though we have some people in my family who are professional cooks and others who cook like they’re professionals). I’m just a home cook who enjoys it and also happens to LOVE feeding people. When the Pilot and I first got married, a friend said I needed a kitchen sign that said, “Never leave hungry” because that seemed to my motto. It brings me so much joy to enjoy awesome meals with the people we love, so we love having friends and family members over whenever we can.

Over time, I’ve learned some good dinner party tips and cooking hacks, so I wanted to share with ya this morning. If you have any you can add to the list, please chime in in the comments section so we can help each other out! (* = ones that were submitted from Instagram! Thank you to those of you who chimed in)

15 Tips For Hosting A Dinner Party

Make anything you can in advance

I learned this one from my nana, who will make and freeze as many meal components as possible before a family get-together. She used to own a catering company, so she’s pretty used to making large quantities of amazing food. Anything you can make before a party, do it. This means things like dips, desserts, side dishes, anything. I usually try to pre-make anything I can, so I’m not cooking as people are arriving.

I learned this one the hard way. We invited friends over the first time we lived in Valdosta, and I hadn’t prepared a single thing. They all sat at the kitchen table as I ran around the kitchen, stressed, and sweating from the hot stove and burners. Learn from my mistake, friends.

Never try a new recipe the night of a dinner party

It can be tempting to want to try a cool new recipe you see on social media or a website, but always give it a test run before serving it to another group of people. I’ve had a handful of Pinterest fails and I’m so glad I took the time to try them out in advance. Serve options that you can cook easily and that you know are a hit.

Set the menu strategically

Check in with guests to see if there are any dietary restrictions. Plan out the menu in advance depending on the occasion and them