Life is short make it count. #5

WOW! WHAT A WEEK! Our house is under contract! It officially went up on the market Monday night and the first person to see it Tuesday morning put in an offer. We had three others look at the house on Tuesday and Wednesday but we were under contract with the first showing within a day of it being listed.

As you know, we've been purging and cleaning and purging and cleaning for weeks (really months) now. Not that the house was dirty, it wasn't and we've taken really good care of it for over nine years, but there were just a few small things we need to do in order to list it. And I wanted to go through every item before just packing it in a box to move. I refuse to move anything that we haven't used. We should be able to fit everything we are taking in the smallest moving truck. :)

A few interesting things happened. We have a central vacuum system in the house (we LOVE it) and part of the vacuum quit working the weekend before we listed the house. I ordered the part we needed on Amazon with overnight shipping for it to be here Wednesday, never thinking our listing would get as much traction as it did so quickly. Long story short, I didn't even have a vacuum for our house before our showings. I just used a good ole broom and dust pan in the areas that I could before anyone showed up. My agent called me Tuesday morning at 10 am and said that someone was interested in coming between 10:30-11:30. Oh my gosh. Sure, we had spent the entire day Sunday going through closets, cleaning blinds, etc. but that also meant that all of the cleaning supplies were still out and things were just messy. I said okay but try to make them come closer to 11:30. I did a speed cleaning of the entire house in 40 minutes, packed the cats up, moved their food and litter boxes and took off. As soon as I got back to the house after the first showing, I brought the cats back in (they HATE the car), moved their litter boxes and food back to where it belonged. Then I walked past the front door and noticed a car sitting outside of our house. Right about that same time my agent called again and said someone else wants to come. Literally on Tuesday I didn't have time to do ANYTHING other than grab a few bites to eat in between showings (being careful to not eat anything too stinky!). I had a major headache by the end of the day I guess because I didn't have enough water. After the first showing I decided to leave the cats at the house. haha. I was able to actually go for walks during two of the showings instead of sit in the car with crying cats. Our agents' phone was ringing off the hook regarding our house. I had a list of things I wanted to do before showings like get fresh flowers, make some good smelling concoctions, etc and I didn't have time to do a SINGLE one. I think this goes to show you how quickly minimalism can sell a house. ;-)

We are so thankful that our house is under contract so quickly. We know there are always some variables where things could fall through but we feel pretty confident with the buyer. The next step is the appraisal so we are hoping that the appraisal matches the agreed to sales price. It should but again, you never know.

P.S. I NEVER knew that posting the picture above on Facebook, of these stickers that Scott puts under our kitchen counter, would lead to the comments it did. Some people were really rude and I even hid their comments haha. These are stickers from PRODUCE and it's just funny. Our house is spotless so for people to say that produce stickers are nasty just blows my mind...it's not like it was chicken...I really don't even understand. Kids and pets make some truly NASTY messes and this is NOTHING. But if you think it's nasty, here's your chance to lighten up just a bit...Anyway, I was so rushed that I didn't even take these down during the showings and they are still under the counter. Maybe I will remember to take them down before closing. So to all you haters...our house is under contract in ONE day even with the stickers up. ;-)

And for those of you wondering, nope we don't know where we are going to move! We will probably have to live in an apartment or rent a house while we build. I'm normally someone who hates uncertainty but this is actually really exciting to me.

We basically spent the rest of the week and weekend recuperating from the last few months. We planned on hiking Saturday, woke up and decided it probably wasn't a good idea to hike in 24-degree weather...repeat the same thing for Sunday, hoping we have some good hiking weather soon. We went over to Scott's brother and sister in law's house to watch the super bowl so at least that was fun.

Oh did I mention that our dishwasher quit working on Friday?! All this stuff is perfect timing! Add a new dishwasher to the new central vacuum part, I'm just hoping those are the only two things we need to replace!

---

Be sure to follow us on the following social media accounts (and snapchat under hesheeatclean) and also sign up for our newsletter so you never miss anything!

Visit this link for our shopping lists and this link for ways to save money grocery shopping.

Meal That I Loved:

• I finally remembered to take a picture of one of my meals! I posted this on Snapchat (hesheeatclean) and Instagram Stories (heandsheeatclean) but also wanted to share it here. It's so easy. We just took the salsa chicken we made and added brown rice, black beans, and avocado. We wrapped it up in a whole wheat tortilla (from Costco). We forgot the lettuce so I added kale (after the picture). I only do half a serving each of the black beans and brown rice. Easy and inexpensive!

Grocery Shopping:

Costco (total $101.11)

I hit up Costco early on Thursday to avoid the crowds over the weekend as people prepared for the Super Bowl.

• Pesticide Free Frozen Blueberries $11.89
• Rotel $4.79 (on sale)
• Tomatoes $6.49
• Organic Chia Seeds 2 at $5.99 each (on sale)
• Avocados $5.99
• Organic Kale $4.49
• 5 dozen Cage Free Eggs $8.59
• Multigrain Chips $3.99 (on sale)
• Mighty Greens $6.69 (on sale)
• Lemons $6.99
• Ground Cinnamon $2.59
• Fage Greek Yogurt $6.49
• Cage Free Liquid Egg Whites 2 at $8.99 each

Publix (total $33.38)

• Cottage Cheese, 2 at $2.39 (BOGO)
• Avocado Oil Spray $4.99 ($1 off)
• Green Pepper $0.94
• Banana/Mixed Berry Baby Food, 4 at $4.76
• Stevia in the Raw $6.99
• Cucumber $0.67
• Ezekiel Bread $4.99
• Bananas $0.37
• Sweet Potatoes $4.02
• Spring Water $1.74

Below is what happens when Scott goes grocery shopping with me...plus, we were on the way to his brothers for the Super Bowl so beer and ingredients for guacamole ran up our bill.

Trader Joes ($58.06):

• Water $2.99
• Organic Ketchup $1.99
• Spicy Mustard $1.29
• Organic Coconut Oil Packets $3.99
• Jalapenos $1.69
• Organic Unsweetened Applesauce $5.58 (2 at $2.79)
• Cilantro $1.79
• Beer: Creature Comforts $21.98 (2 at $10.99)
• Thai Lime & Chile Cashews $7.49
• Salsa $2.99
• Red Onions $0.99
• Lime $0.29
• Sweet Potatoes $2.45

Dining Out:

• Chipotle $14 (tacos and a burrito bowl)

Food Prep:

• Lean Mean Bison Burgers
• Zesty Grilled Chicken
• Zesty Grilled Onions
• Maple Cranberry Overnight Oats
• Sweet-Sweet Potato Cubes
• Ground Chicken seasoned with DIY Taco Seasoning
• Chocolate Chunk Protein Bars
• Sauteed Mushrooms
• Refreshing Green Juice
• Plain Lentils

Workouts:

I'm still using the Run Builder as a guide but adjusting as I see fit. I don't really run that often (especially in less than ideal weather) so I swap out incline training and sprints for straight runs. We have made it a priority to be in and out of the gym in an hour or less because we have been so busy lately. It's important to make time to rest and recharge. Listen to your body!

• Monday: Faster Class (AM - speed & agility) + Arms (PM)
• Tuesday: 3 mile walk while house was being shown + Legs
• Wednesday: OFF - 3 mile walk while house was being shown
• Thursday: OFF - 1 mile walk
• Friday: 1 mile walk + Shoulders and a little bit of Legs + 20 min cardio (easy treadmill)
• Saturday: 1.5 mile walk + Chest and Back + 20 min cardio (8.0% incline, 3.4 mph)
• Sunday: 40 min cardio (10 min run at 9 mm pace, 10 min sprints, 10 min incline, 10 min stair climber)

Items We Sold:

• Workout Clothes (friend) $80

Until next week, have a good one! Let us know if you ever have any questions or comments! I've loved hearing from you about the updates! Click here to read all of our updates.

Life is short make it count. #4

NOTE: Time is running out to join our She Sweats Winter Workout Challenge! Learn more here.

I'm kind of going backwards here to start off the week but I think this is important. On Friday I met one of my friends for lunch. I think we met at the gym, I'm not really sure but she used to come to some of the group fitness classes I taught. Anyway, she wanted to chat about a business she had started but didn't really know how to get it off the ground. The main thing I felt was holding her back?! Perfection. She didn't want to post anything until her pictures were perfect or she had everything exactly the way she wanted it. The biggest piece of advice I gave her, and now I am giving you is to JUST DO IT. There's a reason that's well known slogan.

WE hinder ourselves. WE get in our own way. WE hold ourselves back.

This world is not perfect. It will never be the perfect time, the perfect picture, the perfect body, the perfect marriage, the perfect kid, the perfect house, etc. What we see online is, more often than not, not real life. You might think you are seeing everything but you aren't. If you truly feel being pushed towards something you must just go for it! I could hold myself back time after time because my food pictures SUCK and it's my own fault because I don't spend that much time on them but I still post the recipes. Should I or could I do better? Yes, but right now that's not a priority for me. If I have a recipe I want to share, I want to share it! I could always go back and re-photograph something. I could hold myself back because I'm not as lean as the next "fitness blogger" but I'm finally cool with where I'm at. I'm able to maintain what I consider a healthy lifestyle and I can climb any mountain I want. That's all I care about. If I waited to share anything on this site until I had a six pack we would all be dead. ;-) I've had visible abs show for maybe one day of my whole life.

Something else holding her back was what people thought (or would think) of her and her business. She does AMAZING works of art with wood and hand painting. She was afraid someone might not think they were good enough. I've quoted this before, and I'll say it again here: "Care about what other people think and you will always be their prisoner." -Lao Tzu.

Am I saying I am perfect? Far from it. Sometimes I have to say these things out loud to someone else just so that I can hear it. Whew, that was a lot longer than expected but you get the point. JUST DO IT. Nothing is perfect so stop waiting for the perfect opportunity! P.S. Here is a link to her Etsy shop and Facebook page if you are interested!

---

Scott was out of town (in Montana) at the beginning of last week. For some reason, we didn't exactly think it through far enough to realize that he could have flown out late Friday/early Saturday and I could have gone too! We didn't book a flight for me since he was only gone for three days and we wouldn't have very much time to spend exploring. Part of me though is mad at myself for letting the cost of a plane ticket deter me from going. This is something that I've tried to overcome the last few years and have in many ways, but looking back I wish I would have gone. I can't say yet what the trip was for but, I mean, it's Montana and Montana is amazing. ;-)

Since Scott was out of town early Monday through late Wednesday, our food prep was a little different. He packed some items to take with him on the plane (bars, rice cakes, pistachios, etc.) and I made the food I wanted...which was Mahi Mahi. ;-) I also re-made our cinnamon roll recipe slightly and had those when he got home. I'll post the updated version soon but here is a link to the older one (there's nothing wrong with them, I just wanted to use more of the ingredients I had on hand). I also have quite a few more recipes I hope to post soon. Lately, I only have time to barely make food, so I haven't been able to photograph anything. But they are coming soon! Speaking of new recipes, did you see the guest post yesterday? You can try this salmon recipe for dinner this week!

My dad came up on Tuesday for us to go hiking and it was just what I needed to get outside for more than 15 minutes at a time (which I do with my neighborhood walks). I feel like I've been stuck inside doing things to list our house for months. We didn't take the right trail so we ended up not doing the one we wanted but it didn't matter. It was still awesome! It's been so cold and windy or either raining here on the weekends so Scott and I haven't braved the elements lately to hike, plus we've had a ton of stuff to do around the house! I'll be so glad when we downsize and we won't have to put so much time into a house that we don't even use half of. Here's a picture of my dad and Buddy, his white german shepherd. My dad hiked over 1,200 miles of the Appalachian Trail a few years ago (he's in his 60's)!

---

Be sure to follow us on the following social media accounts (and snapchat under hesheeatclean) and also sign up for our newsletter so you never miss anything!

Remember you can visit this link for our shopping lists.

Grocery Shopping:

Costco #1 (total $104.67):

• Organic Kale (2 bags at $4.49 per bag) $8.98
• Mighty Greens Juice $6.69 (on sale)
• Canned Organic Black Beans $6.79
• Canned Organic Diced Tomatoes $6.49
• Cage Free Liquid Egg Whites $8.99
• Cage Free 5 dozen Eggs $8.59
• Organic Chia Seeds $7.49
• Cottage Cheese $4.99
• Organic PB Fit $11.99
• Avocados $6.99
• Organic Whole Wheat Tortillas $5.59
• Organic Coconut Oil $18.99

Costco #2 (total $61.38):

• Waters $4.99
• Organic Kale (2 bags at $4.49 per bag) $8.98
• Baby Bella Mushrooms $4.49
• Wild Tuna $14.99
• Ground Bison $19.99
• Mighty Greens Juice $6.69 (on sale)

Publix (total $47.49):

• Unsweetened Almond Milk (2 at $2.25 each) $4.50
• Tangerine Juice (recipe coming soon!) $3.99
• Lindt Dark Chocolate (2 at $2.79 each) $5.58
• Halo Top $5.49
• Ezekiel English Muffins $5.35
• Ground Chicken Breast $5.29
• Avocados (2 at $2 each) $4.00
• Colby Cheese $5.69
• Sweet Potatoes $4.18
• Skyr Smoothie $1.99 (on sale)

* I used a coupon for the almond milk ($1.50 off 2).

Dining Out (Scott dined out while he was in Montana but I'm not sure of the total):

• Cotton Calf - small local restaurant ($16.84): spinach salad with chicken and blue cheese (lunch with Sarah)
• Diablo's ($18): 2 burritos bowls with chicken, Scott's with extra meat

Food Prep:

• Grilled Mahi Mahi (Costco)
• Sweet-Sweet Potato Cubes (Publix)
• Chocolate Chunk Protein Bars
• Boiled Eggs
• Cinnamon Rolls (updated recipe coming soon!)

We also did another smaller food prep when Scott got home:

• Chicken Tortilla Soup
• Southwest Bison Chili

---

Workouts:

Like I mentioned, I'm doing the workouts from Run Builder but modifying for hiking, not necessarily mile for running. Also, since Scott was out of town at the beginning of the week I just took a few classes in place of my normal workouts. It's just what I felt like doing at the time. ;-)

• Monday: 1 mile walk + Bootcamp Class + 10 min stair running at home
• Tuesday: Cardio/Weights Class + Yoga/Pilates Class + 2 hour hike with my dad (around 4 miles)
• Wednesday: OFF - walked a little less than 2 miles around neighborhood
• Thursday: 2 mile walk around n'hood + Upper Body workout + 20 min treadmill (5 min sprints + 15 min incline)
• Friday: Lower Body workout + 10 min at 6% incline, 3.3 mph
• Saturday: Piyo + 40 min cardio
• Sunday: OFF

---

Items We Sold (total: $206.70)

• Sporting Goods (Facebook yard sale group): $75
• Clothing (Plato's Closet): $101.70
• Monopoly Glasswear (eBay): $30

Items We Donated:

• Tons of linens (again, why did we have so many sheets?!)
• Storage items
• Curtains
• Curtain rods
• Luggage
• Clothes
• Picture frames

Until next week, have a good one! Let us know if you ever have any questions or comments! I've loved hearing from you about the updates! Click here to read all of our updates.

Life is short make it count. #3

NOTE: Time is running out to join our She Sweats Winter Workout Challenge! Learn more here.

I'm loving sharing these quotes because they really make me think too. I've had a ton of quotes written down that I've wanted to share and I'm glad this gives me a place to share them! I just share whatever is on my mind, if you haven't noticed. ;-) This quote is something that I'm trying to keep in mind. Tomorrow is never promised so we need to make the most of each day. This doesn't mean that each day will be glorious but we should at least take the time to be thankful for at least one thing each day. Live today, don't wait until tomorrow or the weekend or next month. Your life is RIGHT NOW.

Last week could be described as sitting waiting for car repairs. I took my car in for an oil change on Tuesday and ended up with hundreds of dollars of maintenance repairs (which were needed but I don't take my car in that often since I don't drive that much) and it took hours longer than I expected. Luckily, my amazing dad came up while I was waiting and we went and walked a few miles on a nearby trail. Then Saturday we had to take Scott's car in and thankfully his was just the oil change! To add to all of the fun we had to have a plumber come out last week also.

The good news is our agent came over to take pictures of our house, which will be going up on the market next weekend! This required more purging and cleaning. Are you sensing a recent trend here? I still have no idea how we accumulated so much stuff in nine years. What makes it even worse is that I feel like ours isn't nearly as bad as some people. I just think about all of the resources that went into the items that we bought but never use. From now on each purchase will be thought through and not just bought because it's on sale or we think we "need" it. There are so many people out there in our own country and in other countries that could really benefit from just a fraction of what we have. It has felt good to donate so many items and I've been trying to find the best place for things to go to.

This week is VERY big for us so I'm excited to see what happens. I can't share it yet but hopefully next week I can let you know what else has been going on around here. It's HUGE!

I have two quotes this week. I love this one too. Our homes should not be a storage unit. They should contain the items that we truly love.

Be sure to follow us on the following social media accounts (and snapchat under hesheeatclean) and also sign up for our newsletter so you never miss anything!

---

I shared a few tips on how to eat healthy on a budget yesterday. If you missed it, be sure to check it out here. I promise one of these days I'll have my life together enough to take pictures of my meals and share those. I do post more meal photos on Snapchat (hesheeatclean) and Instagram (heandsheeatclean), so be sure to check them out there!

Grocery Shopping (keep in mind that we don't "use" all of these items in one week):

• Costco: $141.05
  • Avocados $6.49
  • Cottage Cheese $4.99
  • Lemons $6.99
  • Frozen Pesticide Free Blueberries $11.89
  • Mighty Greens Juice $6.69 (on sale)
  • Organic Salsa $7.69
  • Organic Kale $4.49
  • Pistachios $14.99
  • Cage Free Liquid Egg Whites $8.99
  • Cage Free Eggs (5 dozen) $8.59
  • Ground Bison $19.99
  • Wild Tuna $14.99
  • Tomatoes $5.99
  • Cucumbers $3.99
  • Almond Butter $7.99
• Publix: $12.12
  • Spring Water $0.87
  • Sweet Potatoes $2.90
  • Avocados $8.00
• Whole Foods: $4.15
  • Baking Powder ($1.79)
  • Baking Soda ($.99)
  • Apple ($1.37)

Dining Out:

• Whole Foods: $33.35
  • 2 salads w/ chicken, blue cheese, onion, dried cranberries
  • 5 wings
  • Tuna avocado roll w/ brown rice/quinoa
  • Runa tea

Food Prep:

• Chicken Tortilla Soup (ingredients from Publix and Costco)
• Bison Burgers (ingredients from Costco)
• Zesty Grilled Chicken (ingredients from Publix)
• Zesty Grilled Onion (ingredients from Costco)
• Sweet-Sweet Potato Cubes (ingredients from Publix)
• Quinoa (Costco)

Workouts:

• Monday: Faster class (speed & agility work) + Arms + 10 min incline on treadmill
• Tuesday: 2 mile walk with dad + Legs + 10 min stairclimber
• Wednesday: OFF - 3 mile walk + Yoga
• Thursday: 1 mile walk + Chest/Shoulders + 10 min incline cardio (6.0 incline 3.6 mph)
• Friday: 1 mile walk + 3.4 mile run/walk + Back
• Saturday: Legs + 20 min incline treadmill + 10 min stairclimber
• Sunday: 20 min incline treadmill/sprints + 15 min stairclimber

* I'm glad that I spent time last week outside since this past weekend we had torrential downpours!

---

Items We Sold (total $298.27):

• Disney DVDs (Facebook yard sale group): $90
• Baseball Cards (mixed box - Facebook yard sale group): $50
• Sporting Goods (eBay): $120
• Shoes (eBay): $38.27

Items We Donated:

• Movies
• Curtains/rods
• Bedding/pillows/blankets
• Flashlights
• Calculators
• Garden supplies

Until next week, have a good one! Let us know if you ever have any questions or comments! I've loved hearing from you about the updates! Click here to read all of our updates.