Mamavation Monday... Vacation, a Break & Campaign 8

Last week was great! 

We were off for a rare family vacation and ended up going to Great Wolf Lodge in WA. 

I would highly recommend going there or to any of the other locations around the country. There was something for everyone there, and I just had to love a resort where kids only need to pack pajamas and a swimsuit. From a wave pool, fabulous water slides, pools and kiddie wading pool it was the best water park we have ever been to. 

As many of you already know, I applied to be a Mamavation Mom for campaign 8. Yes, I am back for a second attempt... you can see my application post HERE , and determined to put my whole heart and soul into this campaign regardless of the outcome. If you also applied, congrats on taking that step! I look forward to supporting all the other ladies applying and have to say I made some good friends from last campaign. With the application comes the hazing! I tried my best to check while we were on the road, and am happy to be back at home and ready to go. This is such a great time. I hope everyone is taking full advantage of the challenges @fitmomtraining & @bookieboo are setting out for us.

Of course, your support is always appreciated, so please tweet: "Hey @bookieboo! I want @notimeMom to be the next #Mamavation Mom. She has my support! http://bit.ly/aorv3Y"

Since I have been a good girl for the past 7 weeks, this week there will be no scale pic, no weight taken, and no agonizing over numbers. This is a week off, and I will be back documenting next Monday. I think towards the end of last campaign I was ready to break-up with my scale, so instead we are going to take a little time off.

Of course, taking a scale-cation does not mean I am going to stop moving! Perish the thought. Here is my schedule for the week, plus hazing. My goal is to get about 2 hours of exercise a day, but broken up with an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon.

• Monday- Top Trainers DVD (Starting back at Day 1), 1 hour walk with kiddos, Jackie's standing ab workout.
• Tuesday- Top Trainers, 1 hour walk
• Wednesday- Top Trainers, yoga
• Thursday- Top Trainers, 1 hour walk
• Friday- Top Trainers, Ab workout, walk
• Saturday- Top Trainers, walk, Just Dance 2 & Just Dance Kids
• Sunday- Rest day with family. Maybe we will go skiing?

If you are curious about the 1 hour walk, it is my usual loop and my kids love it! I try to stick to a 16 minute mile, and track my milage with the RunKeeper Pro app for the Droid. I also figured out that by walking, I can easily hit 12,000+ steps for the day.

Goals for the week:

1. Stay Hydrated
2. Get 8 hours of sleep (this will be the toughest one!)
3. Get outside daily, even if it is raining. I do have great rain gear and a rain cover for the double stroller, so no real excuses not to.

Sista of the Week - I big shout-out to Shelly (@Momma_Oz) for being chosen this week. I joined Mamavation when Shelley was campaigning to be Mamavation Mom and she has been a great force in my continued motivation since then. You can find her posting on the Mamavation.com site and also tweeting away during the day. I am proud to have her as a Sista, and so happy to be able to gush a little about her.

MAMAVATION TV: Join us Monday night at 7pm PST/10pm EST on Mingle Media TV

BLOGGING CARNIVAL: This week’s blogging carnival is sponsored by Fit Studio.  One blogging carnival participant will receive a Fitness Basket with Weider PowerSwitch Adjustable 25 lb. Hand Weight, 65 cm Fitness Ball, and Sportline Elite Fitness Pedometer..  Answer the following question in your blog post and link back to the Fit Studio website.  Link up your post here to share with others.

Question: What time of day works best for you to be active?  How do you make sure you stick to those planned workouts?

With two little kiddos underfoot, I have to fit activity in throughout my day. Naptime is not always guaranteed time for me, so I try to fit in a morning walk or DVD first thing, then something else around 10 am. I am a big fan of Jillan's Shred (20 minutes) or Jackie Warner's ab workouts (15 minutes) because they are easy to fit in. On days I have waited till later, I am often too tired to get moving. But, on days I find myself really short on time I try to fit in short bursts whenever I can. 10 minutes several times a day can be just as beneficial as a good solid hour of exercise, as long as I make every minute count. I feel much better when I get in my exercise during the day and that keeps me coming back for more.

When do you find time to exercise? What is your favorite quick workout?