sharing more about how long we intend to homeschool, and why the heck we’re doing it with just a little over a month left of the school year. 

Hi friends!

I hope that you’re having an amazing week and I’m so pumped that so many of you have signed up for our Spring Forward wellness challenge. Make sure to sign up here – it’s totally free and it’s going to be a ton of fun. If you’re looking for a blast of motivation as we head into spring, this is the perfect way to do it!

For today’s post, I wanted to share a little bit more about our homeschool journey and what’s going on. I’ve alluded to the fact that we’ve had a rough time the past few months and it’s been difficult to navigate how and what to share. I’ve always been open with you guys when it comes to my life, but the purpose of the blog has always been to share MY experience; not my children’s. It’s a tricky line to walk, especially when they’re a huge part of my life and I feel like so many of you are a part of our family. At the same, I never want them to feel like their privacy has been invaded by what I share here, so I’ve always tried to take a delicate approach to my content, especially as they’ve gotten older.

The nutshell version is this: we ended up transferring Liv to another private school in January. We were all struggling with the mind-boggling amount of homework, tests, and assignments. It was especially hard with her competition dance schedule. We switched studios and cut her hours in half, and she was still up until at least midnight every night (for the past 2+ years) trying to finish everything for school. I’m a huge believer in hard work and I think academic rigor has its place, but it was too much for everyone. So, she switched and has been thriving.

When she switched schools, it was the first time P hasn’t had her big sis at school, which was challenging for her. The Pilot also retired, which was a huge transition, and she started to have more frequent stomachaches. (Her stomach has bothered her on and off for years, which has always worried me since she had severe reflux as a baby and was on Prilosec and Zantac, which has been recalled for terrifying reasons.) She saw multiple doctors, had an ultrasound, her stomach was deemed “healthy,” and their only suggestion was to put her on a PPI again. She was also doing CBT weekly, and sometimes twice a week. Her stomach pain and anxiety got so bad that she missed many days of school, and we were here trying to keep up with the insane amount of homework, classwork, and tests.

The Pilot was home for retirement and was teaching her the content, making sure she completed the huge packets of classwork, and taking her to school for tests. He had go back to commercial airline training and I couldn’t fathom solo parenting, working, and trying to keep up with all of the school work she was missing, so I asked her to either choose to go back to school or we could pull her out, and she said, “Please homeschool me.”

I never intended to be a teacher, but I’ll do anything for our babies and if it’s what P needs right now, I’m going to do it.

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Sharing the details for our Spring Forward Wellness Challenge. The fun starts on April 21, it’s totally free, and you can join here. 

Hi friends! I hope that you’re having an amazing morning. If you’re feeling a little blah and looking for a motivation burst, I hope you’re join us for this year’s Spring Forward wellness challenge. All of the details are below!

I’ve been running fitness and wellness challenges on my blog since the very beginning, and every year they evolve into something different and better than the year before. This is 100% in thanks to all of you: your support and shared motivation with one another, check-ins and awesome comments keep this thing going. You help each other along the ways to your goals, and as your cheerleader from the sidelines, it’s heartwarming and inspiring to see.

What is the Spring Forward Wellness challenge?

What to expect:

We rock and roll Monday, April 21.

When you sign up, everything is delivered to your inbox: 2 weeks of workouts + video tutorials, weekly plans and guidelines on structuring your week, recipe pack, and a full two-week meal plan for healthy eating inspo. You can start with us on April 21, or if you’re ready to go for it now, start whenever you’d like!

Your goal is to complete 10 workouts in 14 days, take the wellness tidbits I share each day in your inbox, and see what works for your life. My goal is for you to feel energized and amazing – to spring forward in progress and momentum.

How to set yourself up for success:

Gather your supplies.

You’ll need the following tools for a successful challenge:

1) A notebook or tracking tool (app) on your phone.

I like to kick it old school and write down my workout and life in a notebook. Find what works best for you, and practice this week writing down your meals, workouts, water intake and how you feel each day. If you plan to track your macros, download My Fitness Pal or Chronometer.

2) Dumbbells.

The workouts are going to be dumbbells and body weight ONLY, meaning you can do them anywhere at any time. For beginners, I suggest 3-5 lb weights to start, intermediates 8-15 lbs and advanced 15 lbs +.

Find a challenging weight for you, and consider investing in a light and heavy set. Y

Hi friends! Happy Friday! What’s going on this weekend? We have an NCL event, two birthday parties, and are meeting up with friends at the pool for dinner. I’ve also been slacking with my IHP 3 studies, so I’m planning on doing some major catch-up.

(nothing like a decaf Americano and a gluten-free donut)

It’s already in the 90s here but I’m kinda loving it. SO ready for summer. I hope that you have a fun weekend ahead!

Last week was our Carmina Burana performance and it was epic. (Check out the article here and a little clip from our chorus practice.) It was such a gift to be surrounded by so many talented musicians and the venue was FULL; almost completely sold out for Sunday’s show. The Pilot brought the kids on Friday and Madre and Nani came to the show on Sunday. Liv also had a dance competition at the same venue, so I was Mrs. Doubtfire-ing it between sympony performances and dance mom life.

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

4.4 Friday Faves

Fashion + beauty + random:

This week was our first official week of homeschooling P. (Liv is happy and thriving at the school she tranferred to in January.) I’m working on a blog post with all of the details – it will be up on Tuesday – but it’s going even better than I was expecting. We’re able to spend some quality time together, learn, and also have freedom to adjust the plan as needed. I never intended on being a homeschool mom, but am loving it so far.

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Hi friends! I’m so excited to have Dr. Michael Biamonte on the show today and we’re talking all about Candida.

– What is Candida and why do traditional treatments fail?

– How do parasites contribute to Candida?

– His protocol for rebalancing the body with Candida overgrowth

– His tips for being Healthy in Real Life

and so.much.more.

Here’s more info about Dr. Biamonte:

Michael Biamonte is the founder of the Biamonte Center for Clinical Nutrition. He is a co-creator of BioCybernetics, which is an unprecedented computer software program that is able to study blood work, mineral tests and many other lab tests to determine exactly where your body is imbalanced initially designed for aerospace purposes. As a practitioner for over 30 years, he is dedicated to improving the lives of his patients and helping them get back to living. He holds a Doctorate of Nutripathy and is a New York State certified Clinical Nutritionist. He is a professional member of the International and American Association of Clinical Nutritionists, The American College of Nutrition and is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for the Clinical Nutrition Certification Board. He is listed in “The Directory of Distinguished Americans” for his research in Nutrition and Physiology.

You can check out his website, connect with him on Instagram, and read his book here.

Partners:

The Lifewave X39 patches have been a gamechanger for my energy; the Pilot is obsessed, too! Check them out here. 

Check out my new favorite red light device here, and use the code FITNESSISTA for a huge discount.

I’ve been using Nutrisense on and off for a couple of years now. I love being able to see how my blood sugar responds to my diet and habits, and run experiments. Read more

Sharing 10 functional fitness workouts you can do at home. 

Hi friends! How’s the day treating you? I hope you’re having an amazing one so far. We’re on Day 2 of homeschool life – we decided to pull P out of her private school and homeschool her for the rest of the year – and knock on wood, things are going well so far. I’m working on a full blog post with all of the details and what we’re doing that I’ll post here soon.

For today, I wanted to chat about fitness-y things, especially since many of us are sneaking in home workouts or travel workouts as we head into spring and summer.

When I work out, I try to emphasize functional movements that make sense for longevity.

Functional fitness helps you move better, feel stronger, and build real-world strength that translates into your everyday life. Think about squatting to pick up your toddler or rotating to grab something from the backseat.

I put together a roundup of 10 workouts you can use for inspiration when you want something quick that makes sense for life. These workouts use foundational movement patterns like squats, hinges, pushes, pulls, and rotation, and can all be done at home with just a set of dumbbells.

Each workout is 30 minutes or less and includes clear form tips to help you move safely and effectively. As always, talk with a doctor before making any fitness changes and honor your body by modifying as needed.

10 Functional Fitness Workouts You Can Do at Home (In 30 Minutes or Less)

Workout 1: Total Body Circuit

Format: 3 rounds – 45 seconds work, 15 seconds rest

1. Dumbbell Squats

Setup: Hold one or two dumbbells at your shoulders or at your sides. Feet shoulder-width apart, toes slightly turned out.

Form Cues:

Sit your hips back and down like you’re aiming for a chair.

Keep your chest lifted and core engaged.

Knees track over (not past) your toes.

2. Push-Ups (modify on knees or incline)

Setup: Start in a high plank with hands under shoulders, feet hip-width apart.Form Cues:

Lower your chest between your hands, elbows at a 45° angle.

Engage your core and glutes to keep your body in a straight line.

Exhale as you push back up.

3. Bent-Over Rows (with dumbbells)

Setup: Hold dumbbells, hinge at hips with a flat back, knees slightly bent.Form Cues:

Pull dumbbells toward your ribcage, keeping elbows close.

Squeeze shoulder blades together at the top.

Avoid rounding your spine.

4. Glute Bridges

Setup: Lie on your back, knees bent, feet flat on the floor, arms by your sides.

Form Cues:

Press through your heels to lift your hips.

Squeeze your glutes at the top.

Keep ribs down and avoid over-arching your back.

5. Forearm Plank Hold

Setup: Elbows directly under shoulders, forearms on the ground.Form Cues:

Keep your body in a straight line from head to heels.

Engage your core, quads, and glu