High Five for Friday

My familia. This photo is somewhat misleading in terms of our respective heights, but a good shot nonetheless.

After taking last week off due to a stuffing-induced inability to function, I'm back with another High Five for Friday! There's lots of good stuff going on these days; it was hard to choose a top five. But here's what I've narrowed it down to:

1. It was my sister's birthday on Saturday and we all got together for lunch, then ended up goofing around and taking photos in the parking lot afterward. It was great to spend a relaxed afternoon with my family.

2. I met with my trainer on Wednesday after taking about a month off, and she kicked my butt! But in a totally great way. I've missed the extra motivation she provides to really push my limits.

3. Speaking of working out, I started a new gym playlist and I'm loving it. All of the songs are the perfect tempo for my jogging speed, and I find myself mouthing the words on the treadmill. If I wasn't out of breath, I'd probably break out in song.

4. The Elf for Health community – I haven't really forged a bond with my elf buddy, but I love the Facebook group. At first I didn't see the point of communing with strangers via the internet, but yesterday was makeup-free day, and it was awesome to see everyone's smiling, natural faces and the support everyone had for each other. So sweet.

5. I sent my friend Val a little Hanukkah care package last week (including these cookies), and her reaction upon receiving it warmed my heart. She had to walk to the post office to pick it up when it was -9 degrees outside and still sent me an exclamation-filled text about how much she loved it. The recipient's excitement is definitely my favorite part of gift-giving.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend. Linking up with Lauren and Jennie this week!