Logan Can

A Lifestyle Blog about Marriage, Parenting, Fashion and Fitness

Worry Wart

I was reading Jesus Calling the other day and like most days, the devotional hit me spot on. The topic was worrying. As you may know from Instagram, our house is up for sale. I have done a lot of praying that God will help us to sell our house quickly. I haven’t prayed that He would help us sell our house in HIS time. See the difference there? I do that all the time. I am so selfish with my prayers and my wants. I am constantly praying for God to do this or that in MY perfect time. Has that ever worked out for you? Anyone? Me either.

I am a worry wart. I worry about the house being too messy, I worry about our laundry being sky high. I worry about the amount of work I have to get done every day while also raising a teething baby at home. God states plainly that worrying is a sin. Some people sin by doing drugs or drinking too much. I sin by constantly worrying. It is a form of distrust. I am not giving everything over to God. I’m trying to deal with it and handle everything myself instead of trusting that he has my back. Why is that? God has never failed me before. He has allowed me go through tough times (or tests as I like to call them), but He has never failed me. He is the one who lifts me up when I’m down. He is the one who gave me my husband at the time I needed him the most. He gave me my precious son when I had almost given up on having children. He has always gone above and beyond for me. So why do I not trust Him enough to quit worrying?

Why is this so difficult for me? Do you struggle with worrying?

Bookworm Review: A Place At The Table by Susan Rebecca White

*Disclaimer: I was given this book as compensation for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*


A Place at the Table by Susan Rebecca White
March, 2014 Touchstone


Goodreads Synopsis: A Place at the Table tells the story of three richly nuanced characters whose paths converge in a chic Manhattan café: Bobby, a gay Southern boy who has been ostracized by his family; Amelia, a wealthy Connecticut woman whose life is upended when a family secret finally comes to light; and Alice, an African-American chef whose heritage is the basis of a famous cookbook but whose past is a mystery to those who know her.

As it sweeps from a freed-slave settlement in 1920s North Carolina to the Manhattan of the deadly AIDs epidemic of the 1980s to today’s wealthy suburbs, A Place at the Table celebrates the healing power of food and the magic of New York as three seekers come together in the understanding that when you embrace the thing that makes you different, you become whole.

My Thoughts: Love, heartbreak, loss, deception, acceptance and rejection – this book has it all! My favorite quote from this novel and the one I feel sums up the story best is “I think it is fair to say that I have become more interested in observing the world, rather than judging it.” 


I loved the stories of the three individuals – Alice, Bobby and Amelia – as well as how they all come together and are connected in a very creative way. I would have liked to see Alice’s character developed a bit more. I felt like the prologue was almost all we got of her life until closer to the end when it explains how they are all connected. I really liked her character and would’ve liked to read more about her.


I also loved that they all start their new lives in New York City considering New York and Ellis Island have always been symbolic of a “new world.” The book is centered around southern food and because I was born and raised in the south, it was very familiar to me. I liked that the novel included a recipe for “Meemaw’s Pound Cake.” 

I gave this book 4 stars. It was beautifully written and extremely creative but I would’ve hoped for a more developed story from Alice. Also, the ending felt a little rushed. I wanted it to keep going. 


This book will be available March 4th and is a Target Club pick for the month of March. Be sure to grab your copy soon!

Fitness Friday: Guess Who’s Back

If you follow my on Instagram, you know that on Sunday, I hit my pre-pregnancy weight!!!!!!! One day before Hamp turned 4 months. Talk about cutting it close to my goal! Do you know how excited I was? I did a happy dance All. Day. Long. Just ask my husband who looked at me like I was crazy. It was a very happy day.

I have still been working out and running this week and plan to continue it. I am currently participating in Tone It Up’s 60 by Spring challenge. We are trying to run 60 miles in 30 days before the official day of spring. I’ve clocked in 23.4 miles so far. I’m still working hard to tighten my core back up. It still isn’t quite back to normal but I am getting there. Slowly but surely I will get there.

My diet has been a struggle this week. I gave in to chick fil a. My weakness. As well as some m&ms. My other weakness. I’m hoping to lose about 7 more pounds to get to my absolute ideal weight, so I’m trying not to give in to any more temptations. As long as I stay focused I feel like I can accomplish this goal. My fitness pal app has still really helped me, but it’s so much easier when I just eat healthy- fruits, veggies and protein. I not only lose weight but I seriously feel better and more energized when I eat really well.

If you are part of the TIU community, please find me on Instagram where I check in daily! I’d love to follow along on your journey as well. Good luck with your fitness goals, ladies! You can do it!

Hampton // 4 Months

Hampton weighed 14lbs. 11oz. and was 25 1/2 inches long at his 4 month check up. He is in size 2 diapers and wears 3-6 month clothes. He saw his first snow and kept trying to eat it as it fell. He is liking tummy time a lot more these days and still loves his swing. He discovered his feet this month and Daddy found his tickle spot (under his arm). He still likes to go on walks with mommy in the evenings and  he loves Thomas the Train. He likes to read and chew on everything. He is eating about 3 ounces at a time and he is finally taking 2 naps during the day. He is grabbing at everything including mommy’s hair and he loves to look at himself (and others) in the mirror. He loves to be naked and loves to splash his feet in the bathtub. He tries to sit up on his own but falls forward a lot. He finally noticed Pippa and has pulled her hair a couple of times (and then she growled. She is still adjusting).His favorite time of day is getting in his morning snuggles with mommy and daddy. Happy 4 months little squishy!

2014 Book List

Must Read Book List

Must Read Book List

This is a list of books I hope to read this year. My list ranges from classics to books coming out this year. What is on your 2014 reading list?

Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth
Winter’s Tale by Mark Helprin
A Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Bridget Jones’ Diary by Helen Fielding

The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty

The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin

Home to Big Stone Gap by Adriana Trigiani

Happy Wives Club by Fawn Weaver

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

P.S. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern

The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen

Home Front by Kristin Hannah

The Perfume Collector by Kathleen Tessaro

The Bookstore by Deborah Meyler

The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan

The Girl You Left Behind by Jojo Moyes

The One and Only by Emily Giffin (release date: May 20th)

The Dream Trilogy by Nora Roberts

Lost Lake by Sarah Addison Allen

The Supreme Macaroni Company by Adriana Trigiani

Fitness Friday: Almost There

I was really sad to see the Tone It Up Love Your Body series come to an end. I really enjoyed it and can’t wait to do it again next year. It helped me lose 13 pounds and several inches. I’m only 2 pounds away from my pre-baby weight and I’m so excited/proud of that.

My ultimate goal is to lose 10 more pounds. I figure if I’ve done this well in 6 weeks, why not keep it going? I’ve been eating a lot healthier and I feel so much better and stronger. I’ve gained a lot of my confidence back which is an awesome feeling. I definitely feel back to myself. Funny thing is, I’m actually starting to enjoy my morning runs. I have always hated running but it is quickly becoming my favorite part of the day. I really want to run my first 5k this year! I would love to do it sooner rather than later but I need to work on my time a little more so I don’t embarrass myself.

I’m looking forward to participating in the Bikini Series coming up in a couple more weeks. Please join me in it and join the Tone it up community! You won’t regret it!

What 5k is your favorite to run every year? How are your 2014 fitness goals coming?

Bookworm Review: Milk Glass Moon by Adriana Trigiani

Milk Glass Moon by Adriana Trigiani
Random House Publishing Group
July, 2003


Synopsis from Goodreads: Milk Glass Moon, the third book in Adriana Trigiani’s bestselling Big Stone Gap series, continues the life story of Ave Maria Mulligan MacChesney as she faces the challenges and changes of motherhood with her trademark humor and honesty. With twists as plentiful as those found on the holler roads of southwest Virginia, this story takes turns that will surprise and enthrall the reader.

Transporting us from Ave Maria’s home in the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Italian Alps, from New York City to the Tuscan countryside, Milk Glass Moon is the story of a shifting mother-daughter relationship, of a daughter’s first love and a mother’s heartbreak, of an enduring marriage that contains its own ongoing challenges, and of a community faced with seismic change.

All of Trigiani’s beloved characters are back: Jack Mac, Ave Maria’s true love, who is willing to gamble security for the unknown; her best friend and confidant, bandleader Theodore Tip-ton, who begins a new life in New York City; librarian and sexpert Iva Lou Wade Makin, who faces a life-or-death crisis. Meanwhile, surprises emerge in the blossoming of crusty cashier Fleeta Mullins, the maturing of mountain girl turned savvy businesswoman Pearl Grimes, and the return of Pete Rutledge, the handsome stranger who turned Ave Maria’s world upside down in Big Cherry Holler. 

In this rollicking hayride of upheaval and change, Ave Maria is led to places she never dreamed she would go, and to people who enter her life and rock its foundation. As Ave Maria reaches into the past to find answers to the present, readers will stay with her every step of the way, rooting for the onetime town spinster who embraced love and made a family. Milk Glass Moon is about the power of love and its abiding truth, and captures Trigiani at her most lyrical and heartfelt.


My Thoughts: I loved this one! It’s almost like this series gets better and better by the book. Etta is growing up and I love learning more about her character and getting a glimpse at her adulthood. This story takes us back to Italy twice. It also reveals a healed relationship between Jack and Ave Maria. All of the characters are back and there is never a dull moment. This novel is filled with loss, marriage, illness, healing, friendships and love. I can’t wait to read the final book in this series but I am going to miss these characters so much. It reminds me of the town of Stars Hollow in Gilmore Girls. I gave this book 5 stars.

Bookworm Review: The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty

The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty
Riverhead, 2012


Synopsis from Goodreads: Only a few years before becoming a famous silent-film star and an icon of her generation, a fifteen-year-old Louise Brooks leaves Wichita, Kansas, to study with the prestigious Denishawn School of Dancing in New York. Much to her annoyance, she is accompanied by a thirty-six-year-old chaperone, who is neither mother nor friend. Cora Carlisle, a complicated but traditional woman with her own reasons for making the trip, has no idea what she’s in for. Young Louise, already stunningly beautiful and sporting her famous black bob with blunt bangs, is known for her arrogance and her lack of respect for convention. Ultimately, the five weeks they spend together will transform their lives forever.
 
For Cora, the city holds the promise of discovery that might answer the question at the core of her being, and even as she does her best to watch over Louise in this strange and bustling place she embarks on a mission of her own. And while what she finds isn’t what she anticipated, she is liberated in a way she could not have imagined. Over the course of Cora’s relationship with Louise, her eyes are opened to the promise of the twentieth century and a new understanding of the possibilities for being fully alive.
 
Drawing on the rich history of the 1920s,’30s, and beyond—from the orphan trains to Prohibition, flappers,  and the onset of the Great Depression to the burgeoning movement for equal rights and new opportunities for women—Laura Moriarty’s The Chaperone illustrates how rapidly everything, from fashion and hemlines to values and attitudes, was changing at this time and what a vast difference it all made for Louise Brooks, Cora Carlisle, and others like them


My Thoughts: Normally I love books that take place in the 1920s. This was an exception. There were parts of the story I loved and parts I hated. I felt like Moriarty was trying too hard to pack in as much (unnecessary) drama as she could. It was just too much and made it hard to enjoy the story. There was too much going on. I also felt that the story was going at a steady pace and then rushed at the end to hurry and finish the book. I gave this one 3 stars.

         

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