Didn't win the Super Bowl BUT...

We are going to Walt Disney World!!! 

My husband and I have been contemplating and debating on what age our kids should be before we go to Disney.  We literally have discussed it for a year now and after a test run to Dollywood we booked our first family trip to Disney for 2014!  Though we have six more months approximately before we leave we (being crazy like we are) have already started planning.

First, one of my friends (matron of honor in fact) gave us the name of an awesome Mickey Travels agent who is totally free BUT worth millions to help with planning our trip!!  She has given us some great tips as well as other friends on Facebook! Plus I've been reading blogs and other tip planning websites to make sure our first trip keeps us coming back for more!  After we booked the trip I've even started looking for sale items Disney related to stock up on before our trip to keep the kids busy in restaurants/lines, to dress up our room a little more disney, make memories plus build excitement for the trip, and gather/save on items we will need to travel with.

Here are a few fun items the kids and I have been working on prior to our trip:

1. For about $50 we went to Joann's fabric and selected fleece to make both kids a tied Minnie and Mickey blanket.  My sister-in-law told me how to make it and it is super simple plus fun and my sweet boy picked out the cutest printed Disney fabric for one side then my mother-in-law and I matched the backing fleece to them. (See bottom of pic below)

2. Mouse keeping tip envelope to leave tips for the house keeping because after reading what all they do for us they should get a little tip each day.  My son cut out the pieces of paper and we made a cute craft project out of it! (See top pic below)

3.  Pillowcases - I found some super cute Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse pillowcases online that I think will be a nice touch to make sure we keep our pillows different from the resorts! Here is a link to the mickey ones I found - Disney Mickey Mouse Standard Pillowcase Black/Red/White

http://amzn.com/B005KLUG7G 

4.Christmas stocking stuffers thus far (since my kids cannot read I can post this now) I got a cute Mickey night light and lanyards for each of us to keep important stuff plus a few fun items for the kids in the coin purse at the end! Here is the link to the lanyard - Disney Set of 2 Mickey and Minnie Mouse Lanyards with Detachable Coin Purse

http://amzn.com/B00CXXYHQA  then here is the night light Disney Mickey Mouse Night Light

http://amzn.com/B004QQWV24

That is all we have finished/bought thus far but we plan on making a countdown chain about 10 days worth (not to draw it out too long), fun daily toy bags for each kid to open before we go to the park (mostly so they do not ask for 100 toys inside), and a few cute shirts for them to wear during the week!  I only plan on buying small fun item to fill the bags with plus glow stuff as other fun things for them to play with during the week!

We are super excited and my four year old keeps asking if we are going today!  :-). If you have tips or neat craft projects we can do that will be useful to take on our trip please comment below!!

Nursing A Baby

Nursing your baby or formula feeding is a very personal choice or you might have no choice and cannot nurse but it all comes down to what is best for your baby and you!  My babies and I might not get through delivery without staples for me and a scary time in the nursery for them but when we connect we really connect with serious bonding time nursing!  I try to let my babies nurse as long in age as they want for my son he went till he was 21 months (yes almost 2 years) and so far my daughter is still going strong at 3 months+ days!  

I have been wanting to do this post for a long time but I have been afraid of giving people the wrong impression.  I am not trying to shame you if you couldn't or didn't want to nurse your baby this post is just my experience and what I have learned along the way that might be helpful to people currently pregnant or already have their baby who have asked me questions.

Here are the things that worked for me to get started and keep going:

-STOCK UP- Before you have your sweet baby start using lanolin (about a month early) it will help get you into shape, purchase a breast pump and buy a good one the high price tag will save you tons of time in the end I love love medela freestyle double pump http://www.medelabreastfeedingus.com/products/category/breast-pumps I bought with my first baby, get several bottles with whatever system you use and at least 6 of the accessories that attach to your breast so you do not need to wash one every two hours, several good nursing bras for day and some wireless comfortable ones for night in a slightly bigger size than you wear near the end of your pregnancy, also it is good to get several nursing nightgowns that have low neck lines (not slits) for easy access during night feedings, breast pads are a must to prevent leaking in your clothes, and finally you will need a few day nursing tops just to wear around the house.

-PUMP PUMP PUMP- After your baby is born try to nurse your baby every 1-2 hours if your baby latches good and only attempts to nurse every two hours then pump after he/she is done.  This should help ramp your milk up!  If your baby needs formula to supplement for them to maintain weight ask for a sucking catheter to place on your nipple so the baby is still sucking on you

-LATCH- make sure your baby has a good latch that doesn't sound like a loud sucking sound because if they do not latch properly they are getting air and/or they might be pinching your ducts causing you to have a clogged duct (not fun)

-Burp your baby every time you switch breasts and after nursing plus some babies might need to be burped during one breast if they start showing signs of being fussy while sucking 

-DRINK and EAT.  Make sure you have a glass of water everywhere you go!  With my first baby I actually landed back in the hospital a few weeks after we got home because you can dehydrafe so quick nursing.  When my kids are under six months old my house looks like a glass of water museum I have so many sitting around.  It is also very important to eat a balanced diet of fresh foods and not starve yourself to drop the baby weight.  I love oatmeal (not the instant kind) and ate it a lot some say it is good to encourage a healthy milk supply.  I've also heard of a dark beer but I never tried that so I'm not sure about that rumor.

-Focus.  Focus on your baby even thinking about how much you want them to eat well can get your milk to let down quicker. Also focus on making sure you start with a different breast each time you sit down plus you need to track the time you feed your baby even if you are like me and allow them to nurse on demand it is important those first few months to know how often they want to eat.

-Get Support!  Since your husband or significant other is not doing the feedings they can still support you by telling you how awesome you are doing, by bringing you water, by making you a snack, and by bringing you frozen peas/ice packs/ heating pads to help if you do experience pain (which don't be alarmed it only lasts a short amount if time)

-Ask someone.  I always find it helpful to ask someone.  Do not be afraid to call a lactation consultant, phone a friend, or chat with a family member about it because you might be surprised to get very candid and helpful tips!

-Position is a personal choice because it is however it is most comfortable for you and the baby.  Since I had an emergency csection everyone thought I should do what they call the football hold but my babies and I hated that so I like the cradle hold.  Here is a link that discusses each hold http://youtu.be/s1gmBVrwAs8 

-RELAX.  I'm not a calm indivdual so it is hard for me to relax but when I'm nursing I think some angels are hovering around helping because I am always relaxed nursing.  I find a nice chair preferably with arms and rocking ability then snuggle the baby I love so much!

-HOLD.  I think it is so helpful, now that I had a baby that got acid reflux, to hold your baby after nursing and burping in an upright position for at least 10-15 minutes especially if they have fallen asleep because it does help their little bodies keep their food down better.

-ENOUGH- How do you know your baby gets enough to eat.  The main ways you know is if they are calm and seem content after eating, they almost fall asleep, and they have a good amount of wet and dirty diapers throughout the day

-ROUTINE- My routine is around the time I think the baby will want to eat I grab a cup of water, make a little snack, make sure the phone/remote is near me, grab a light blanket if the baby doesn't already have one, sit in the recliner or glider, and start nursing then burping 

I think this is the main questions I'm asked all the time, but this post might evolve as more question arise or when I actually read this post back to myself later realizing I forgot several good tips!  I just finished putting both of my babies down for a nap and holding my three month old because she just nursed so I'm sure when I proof read this I will find a ton of errors as well but hopefully you will be able to get the main points I'm making here.

Witness my fitness - post #8 Just Run

My favorite stress buster and workout is running!  I am not super placement ribbon fast anymore but the open road with music in my ears equals peace and tranquilly.  I have ran most of my life and I had a phase where running was not my favorite at all but I did it to stay in shape to do other sports.  Of course I am not a professional trainer or runner but a few things have helped me love running.

1- If it is not hard at first then you are doing it wrong.  Anytime you are doing something new or just starting a workout routine after taking a break it will be hard.  Just know it will get better and stay focused on why you are putting yourself through a tough workout.

2- Be prepared!  If you start off with a marathon after just one week of running you will at minimum fail but most likely get a serious injury in doing so.  In fact, you should start crawling before you walk then think about running.  I always start by walking a mile then increasing speed after a week then jog finally running a slow pace and so on.  I only increase my miles by half a mile after I feel comfortable in that one mile first and I decrease my speed when adding distance as well.

3- Be Equipped!  Some sports you can grab any pair of shoes, clothes, and skip warm ups, but if you are not equipped with the proper gear plus good stretching warm ups you have a higher rate of failure and injury.  Things you must have include a GREAT sports bra, a expensive plus PERFECT pair of shoes, good socks, compression shorts/tights/capris, and running tops.  Normally I would say go for the bargain but please do no go for the cheap for this because it really makes it easier to run plus most importantly safer.

4- Stay hydrated and nourished. If you have no gas in your car it will no run so why do you think you can on very little water or food?  At first I even walk with water bottles with me to drink along the way then as I increase speed I'm normally drinking and eating more during the day because my body knows it needs it.  

5- Tune in!  I love jamming out to songs that move me!  Sometimes I listen to songs I normally Iike to listen to then most of the time I listen to songs I do not normally listen to but they have a fast beat or rockin hard drum that makes me want to run faster and faster.

6- Be safe!  When running on roads like I do you must be safe.  Always run against the flow of traffic so the driver sees you and you can see the drivers.  Watch where you run to avoid streets with sex offenders or other locations known for crime so you are not putting yourself in danger.  If you are running at night at the very least wear reflective tape or get a safety running vest so cars can see you.

7- Encourage or be encouraged!  Join a running group to motivate you and keep you focused.  Call a friend you know runs and ask if they want to run with you.  On the flip side create your own running group or ask someone you know might want to start running to start with you.

8- Get checked!  Before starting any fitness program go to your doctor for a complete checkup and discuss your plans with them.  Not only will that give you a baseline to start from but it will also give you a gage of your current fitness level.  

9- Stay focused!  Concentrate on why you decided to start running.  My reason is that I want my children to see their mommy cares about her health they should too plus I want to be heathy so I can take care of my family!

10- Believe!  Believe in yourself give yourself a pep talk during the run know you are getting better and doing great!  Do not let anyone or anything get in your way!  I just checked my newsfeed on another social media outlet last week and a friend of mine posted something about seeing a person running at 250+ lbs but she respected him because she saw him walking at a higher weight months before so she respected him for his determination and belief in hisself!  

I think ten is good for now!  More on running I'm sure later but I hope you enjoyed my list please add more in comments if you have more too!!

Before Delivery & 7 weeks After

I recently had several people want to see some before and after shots so here goes:

Below is my second pregnancy before delivery at 36 weeks pregnant on the left and 7 weeks after delivery on the right

Below is my first pregnancy before at 41 weeks pregnant and after at 8 weeks

The biggest difference I see here is that with my first pregnancy I was smaller to start with and during I didn't gain as much weight because I was more active. With my second pregnancy I was less active due to complications then I was also bigger starting weight as wel where I took hormone therapy combined with fertility treatments.  Several differences but all in all it seems very similar on how I started dropping weight.  I am now 10 pounds away from my pre pregnancy weight after 7 weeks from my second csection YAY!!  Just hope this coming week I am cleared to get moving by the doctor but I have a feeling he is going to get mad at me for doing too much yesterday :-/ oops!!!

Recipe for healthy kids

After watching a CNN Anderson Cooper video today of a two year old child having a  sippy cup of coffee every morning since she was 9 months old with her mother then getting "Tinker Tea" which is tea, pixie sticks, and Mountain Dew I had to write this post!  I'm not a perfect mom and my three year old has had pizza from a box, a yucky hot dog (which thankfully he didn't love), cake, cupcakes, and the like BUT for the majority of the time I do give him healthy food during meal times.

In my opinion a recipe for a healthy kid is as follows:

-love and affection

-sleep 12 hours at night 1 hour day

-fruits, veggies, and the right balance of the other stuff in moderation 

-exercise including as much fresh air as possible

-hand washing lots of hand washing

-brain workouts requiring focus

I'm sure if I had more time I could come up with a few more and in no way are my kids never sick but since I've been a stay at home mom the number of times we have been sick has drastically reduced to a few minor sicknesses per year (thank the good Lord!).  Sometimes you just cannot protect them because something's are completely out of your control!  

I am truly sad very sad about this poor child on the video and very sad that toddlers and tiaras have yet again disgraced parenting and what people think of pageantry as well.  

If you wish to watch the video here is the link:  http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/10/ridiculist-coffee-for-kids/

Stay At Home Mom 102

I am NOT an expert at being a stay at home Mom let me begin with that information.   I'm getting the hang of it and as of April I just became a stay at home Mom of two so just when I thought I had things under control I am back at square one.  This is my attempt to highlight a few things about being a stay at home mom of two or one that I had to learn.  My experience has brought me full circle from a working Mom then a stay at home mom of one for around two years and now a stay at home mom of two for several months!

I must put a confession in here that I was a working mom who thought stay at home moms had it easy so easy, but very quickly realized stay at home moms work harder than anyone.  Much respect now that I'm wearing the stay at home mom shoes!  The job pays good with kisses and the benefits to my kids are excellent but it is a twenty-four-seven job that gives no sick leave, vacation, or security of knowing what your job description will be since it is written and rewritten everyday.

 Here is a short list of my experience:

-Never wear black... wait... never wear white... Wait... Umm just NEVER wear nice clothes because no matter the color you will go around all day getting so dirty by the end of the day it is hard to tell what  color you are wearing!  For example, it isn't just the milk the baby spits up on you it is the jelly from lunch too plus chalk from sidewalk coloring oh and the snot from an allergy nose ... you get the picture!

-If it is quite run call 911 because it is an emergency!  Your toilet is filled to the brim with something like toilet paper plus the bathroom hand towel and/or a magazine.  You go to change the babies diaper things get quite your 3 year old has made a 5 ft tower from cushions and proceeds to climb it and jump onto your hardwood floors almost hitting his head on the ceiling fan blades!

-Do not sit down it is counter productive because as soon as you do someone needs something, has to go to the bathroom, starts crying, wants food, and/or wakes up from sleeping.  Just stand at all times!

-If your children wouldn't nap during designated nap time mentally prepare for all out war, tears over everything, and don't forget to feed them dinner early so they hopefully get a little full to go to bed early :-) right!!!

-Have several changes of clothes for the kids because one or two sets will need to be washed within the first few hours of the day 

-If you have something nice lock it in a safe till the kids are in college and never buy nice things just hold off till later in life when you might keep it nice for a few minutes

-If you want a clean house shell out the money for a clean house just again get mentally prepared that in 1 hour or less after the cleaning service leaves things are back to disaster zone so just realize it is materialistic so it is not important

-Take showers at 3am or an insane hour when the kids finally go to sleep so you can be clean for a few hours till they wake up

-To get anything accomplished during the day other than feeding the kids, dressing the kids, redressing the kids, getting the kids down for nap, and doing several activities with the kids you MUST plan it.  For example Monday can be dusting the house and cleaning the floors day, Tuesday can be grocery day, and so on but just realize that some days maybe no day will work out as planned.

-Meltdowns will happen and might happen often just remember to stay calm the room will feed off of anger or fear so stand your ground change the subject and learn to read a potential meltdown and avoid it next time if possible

-remember you are human some days you will feel like you have damaged your kids beyond repair or you are the worst mother in the world or you are frazzled too much and need a timeout yourself

-recharge your batteries which is easier said than done I am not good at doing this at all (ok never really) but I'm learning it is important to get out as an adult sometimes wear nice clothes and discuss something other than mickey mouse adventures - like I said I know this is important just hard to plan all the logistics plus actually walk out the door without guilt

I could go on and on about the things I've learned and I am still learning more everyday.  I would NEVER trade this time for anything and I know I am going to be incredibly sad when the house is clean and quite because the kids are gone to college.  I also know that I feel more like myself with my kids because they bring out the best me!  All in all it is the hardest job but the BEST job I've had or will ever have in my life!  I am very grateful that I can be a stay at home Mother!

http://pinterest.com/pin/31243791134790334/

Witness my fitness - post #7

I'm all about the "lazy" workout because I know for a fact they really do help.  The term lazy workouts are a lot of fitness guru's way of saying that you are doing little things during your everyday routine that can be considered working out.  For example while brushing your teeth for 2 minutes you do two minutes of popping up on your tippy toes from flat feet working your calf muscles or you park at the back of a parking lot to walk a little extra.  The quote "every little bit helps" really applies here!

Here are the things I do that I consider a "lazy" workout:

-While I'm riding in the car I flex my muscles

-during a shower I exhale holding in my abs several times

-I do park a little further then walk if I'm without my kids with kids any distance is a workout  :)

-while brushing my teeth I do several calf exercises

-As I clean the house I do lunges and squats 

Really ready to start working out and especially using my abs but after my doctor appointment yesterday I was not released for activity.  Possibly I can start working out next week so just a little longer and I can start a real workout routine!!  Until then I will just work my arms and legs in the approved ways that I can!  Guess I will be on the lazy workouts or most if them for a little longer and I also might start the couch workout out plan too check it out at http://pinterest.com/pin/103582860152439792/ !

I think I just gave you a good reason to be "lazy" too!!  Let's do it!!!  

Witness my fitness - post #6

My favorite workout move is the lunge especially the walking lunge!!  It is a killer leg and butt lifting move that you feel immediately!  All of my personal trainers use this move during the days we were working legs and butt muscles.  Here is a photo with explanation on how to do the perfect lunge:

Photo from: http://pinterest.com/pin/11751648998396487/

Note: I do not do this move holding a child until I'm much more fit because with the state my current leg muscles are in I am not balance enough to feel comfortable holding the baby so this is something I do prior to taking a shower! 

Lunges - it's what's going on so try it and feel immediate burn!!!!

Witness my Fitness - Post #5

Late night snack attacks are one of my big battles because for some reason as long as I can remember I want a little snack after 9pm.  I'm not talking good for you snack I'm talking salty and sugary.

To combat this I've started drinking more water before bed and I've started to eat more (as in snack) during the day!  Some snacks I've incorporated are nuts, apples, avocado (which I LOVE), pretzels, and carrots.  I eat these things two times per day one snack in the morning and one in the afternoon.  So far I stil want a snack before bed I think because I'm still nursing a lot and need the extra calories so I've added a snack much of the same above or possibly popcorn because right now I'm listening to my body very well to make sure my baby is getting good nutrition as well.  

Love this flow chart and living it:

Photo from: 

http://pinterest.com/pin/69594756714604651/

Witness my fitness - post #4

The weekends are AWESOME!!  During weekends I get a few extra mommy minutes plus recharge the old battery by going out of the house with help!!  

This week we received one of my get fit and stay fit tricks so all of us can drink water anywhere!  We are planning a trip for Disney next year sometime therefore I wanted a way to make sure we could stay hydrated so I purchased these Brita water bottles:

It's the little things that can really make a difference!!

For excercising and safety purposes I also purchased some stroller fans (http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0043IS18I/ref=redir_mdp_mobile)for our summer walks and activities so my sweet babies are cool even if the shade isn't readily available.  Even found my one month old a cool sun prevention hat but I'm still looking for something more than a baseball style hat for my 3 year old.  

Happy weekend everyone!!!

Blog On Explanation

I constantly have the need recently to explain myself.  I'm not sure why I do but since I'm a stay at home mom of a one month old and three year old I don't have ANY time plus I wish I could say I'm running on fumes but it is more like vapors however I do this blog so I guess perception is I do have time.

Let me explain, since a lot of my normal stress relievers are on hold for a while I do this blog to discuss certain topics and  motivate my brain to keep active on adult type topics.  However, I do not have time nor am I ignoring my sweet babies to post this blog due to the fact I always have both children asleep normally with at least one on top of me which means I cannot sleep so to keep from dropping said child off into the floor I type with one hand and keep myself awake by blogging.  The other situation I get a chance to blog is when my three year old is eating and I have finished feeding or in process of feeding the one month old.

Lots of moms have e-mailed, texted, and sent me Facebook messages they would  love to blog but they feel like they do not have time how do I do it.  Very simply put I don't have time either if I didn't have my trusty iPod and one hand free plus the need to be awake during a very sleepy moment I wouldn't be blogging either.  

So now that I've explained you know you can do this too!!!  Blog it out y'all!!!!  

Here is a pic of when I cannot blog but you get the picture it is almost nap time here:

Witness my fitness - post #3

Today my sweet one month old woke me up after a long night in a long line of consecutive long nights at 2AM then finally 5AM to nurse again.  Not unusual morning for me but while my sweet boy is still asleep and after nursing so is my sweet girl I'm heading to the bathroom to get a few minutes of Mommy time.  I even got fifteen whole minutes which is a lot!

During Mommy time at least two mornings a week (or as much as possible) I'm measuring my waist and getting on the scale to see what if any change my fitness plan has caused.  Taking measurements a little less often would show bigger change but I already have a large amount of change to hold in my mind because right now I've lost 33lbs and 10 inches from my waist which sounds like a lot in just 6 weeks but I still would like to go 30 more pounds and 10 more inches over the next 6 months to a year.  A lot of articles I have read states jumping on the scales plus measuring your waist area are keys to a successful weight loss program to keep you motivated.  It certainly does keep me on my toes especially last post pregnancy workout if I started to see my numbers climb I started to try to pin point reasons the scale might be tipping in the wrong direction so I could change what I was doing!  However I do find once I really start working out harder and muscle tone starts appearing again the scale number does go up a few pounds which I do not worry about because I know that is my body saying I'm really on the right track.  One of my personal trainers explained since muscle weighs more than fat that will happen when good muscle tone starts to develop!

Again weight is just a number but it is a good tool to show progress!  Last post pregnancy numbers held almost to the exact weight loss numbers as this time and I was back to pre pregnancy weight by 4 months however this time I started out 18 pounds heavier due to 6 months of hormone therapy with 6 months of fertility treatments to get pregnant plus all the stress that goes along with all of that.  Also last time by about 8-9 months out I had even shattered my pre pregnancy weight and got down to college weight which actually didn't look good on me anymore see the photo below. Therefore this time I'm going to try to maintain what I call wedding weight because it was just right and in line with a more healthy look plus feel for me!!  

Here you can tell I was too thin at 110lbs as we prepared to hike:

Witness my fitness - Post #2

Happy National Running Day!!!  I am really ready to start running badly but I am not cleared for training even though it has been 6 weeks (as of today) since my girl was born via c-section.  I'm still waiting on June 18th where hopefully I will be cleared.

In honor of running day I did  take my two babies on a good slow walk around the neighborhood.  Love the little things I feel I can easily work in with two babies and walking is one of them!  I also let my 3 year old make "trails" for us to skip, jump, walk, and dance on with sidewalk chalk on the driveway.  Even holding my one month old I can in slow motion do all of that because she thinks those motions are calming!  

Speaking of calming since I cannot do a lot of the things I do to relax my fitness plan has to include something's to reduce stress.  Stress is very toxic and I'm working really hard to be more relaxed.  I started researching ways to relax and lots of information pointed to some things I already do.  

Here are my normal stress busters:

-Prayer is very relaxing because I know that is the only way to truly be heard and get results God is awesome!

-Journaling is an amazing stress relief because I can write every feeling down let it all out and lock it up. Only problem with this is that I had to instruct family members to burn them if something happens to me :) plus right now especially if I cannot do something with one hand it isn't going to get done so I'm missing my journal

-Running and excercising which at this time isn't relaxing because I cannot get a good workout in due to some pain I'm having 

-Taking a nice hot jacuzzi bath with jets then adding my favorite LUSH bath bomb for a nice soak.  Again sadly I cannot do this till I know my incision is good to go in for a good soak.

-Going to the spa to get ... hmm ANY service I'm crazy about the spa.  Nursing schedule right now is blocking this because anyone that's ever been to a spa knows you should expect to be there for a few hours.

--Going on a trip to just get away.  Logistics on traveling right now are a nightmare and due to my baby girl being a month early we have tried to keep her away from public places.

-Cleaning the house for me is very therapeutic because a clean house clears my mind.

-Watching my kids sleep in my arms BEST feeling in the world to watch them sleep while I hold them ahh doing this right now as I type :)

-Cry it out!  Yes big girls do cry!

-Have one nice glass of vino tinto with some tasty Italian food. Not happening for a long time because I don't have even one drink while nursing.

-Make someone else happy feels SO good and calming

-Also I just found this on Pinterest http://pinterest.com/pin/151503974937348819/ it has some good tips too

So day two of fitness plan get rid of STRESS no more drama for this momma :-)

Witness my fitness - post #1

Since I will most likely be cleared by the Doctor on June 18th to start working my stomach muscles again I thought I would begin documenting my journey to get back in shape after baby number two.  In doing this type of post I thought it might gain me extra support since this time healing has been a more difficult process.

Backstory: Not only did I have emergency csection with number two but I also had internal repair work done as well plus where this pregnancy was more difficult I was a lot less active causing me to start off with fifteen pounds to get back to pre-pregnancy weight and thirty-five pounds to get to pre-fertility struggle weight.  It will be hard because I am a firm believer that the only way to lose real weight is to work extremely hard meaning I do not buy into the quick fix programs!  Since I am and hopefully will be for at least 23 more months nursing diet and exercise also must be geared toward maintaing that as well.  I do have one excellent motivating person in my life - my 3 year old boy keeps me on my toes so that will help add "fun" workouts in!

Here are some of the things I have already started to do:

1. I drink (or try very hard) a lot of water everyday and really this I always have done so just trying to get more in is what I'm really doing new

2. Use fit throwing as a great leg/butt workout.  During the times in the day the baby or my three year old has serious meltdowns I obviously check to see what might be going on and take care if the issue first but if no real issue is present normally my babies just need a nap so ensues the flight to the sleep.  I start off by picking up the baby and on my tiptoes bounce, then when that gets boring I switch legs and step side to side, after that I do some butt crunches by tightening up my tush muscles, and I just keep rotating between those till the baby is asleep.  It sounds nuts but it really is a good workout!

3. Eat as much real food as possible.  Who eats fake food right?!?!  Honestly I do not remember who wrote the article but I read somewhere "if it comes from a plant eat it but if a plant made it leave it alone" and I love that slogan.  Granted I do have freezer foods and we are not perfect with this especially since my husband hasn't gained an oz since high school but I do make an effort.

4. I just started logging my weight, measurements, and food again into a health journal app called MyFitnessPal.  It is a great tool to keep me motivate and if I remember correctly it was either free when I got it years ago or cost VERY little

Next step I'm going to get cleared by the doctor and hope to start doing some exercise routine that I am currently researching that would be best for my body type.  When the baby gets a little older and can go longer without nursing or if she actually will even take a bottle I might go back to a gym personal trainer again so I have extra professional support.  My thought is investing in health and well being is the best investment you can make especially when you have children.  Also to make it super clear a number on the scale doesn't mean anything it is only one piece of data that helps get to a healthy point.  

Please post any comments of motivation or suggestions on what has worked for you!

12 Years

This post is a jumble bumble of thoughts and emotion so I will warn you before reading it might be hard to get where I'm going, but here goes!!!

Twelve years TODAY my husband and I will celebrate being together as a couple for what seems to be a short time! At first when I realized that TODAY is the anniversary of that life milestone I wasn't too interested because after all we are at a 5 hour time difference plus in different countries at the moment, but now it hits me! Call it pregnancy hormones or whatever but my mind was flooded with memories over those 12 years not just of my Husband and I but of all the people that we made incredible connections with during that time.

I feel honored and blessed to have so many heaven on Earth moments! The best, greatest, most wonderful, and the hardest work would actually be this phase of life right now. I absolutely LOVE being a Mother and a wife in our growing family! Every moment is a miracle and each day teaches me something new about myself. The only sadness I really have is that I am horrible as a friend to all the good people I call my friends because honestly I only do things with family now. Those wonderful people I made friend connections with (no not just Facebook) but real amazing connections with over the years I've completely dropped and put 100% of my time now into my family where I feel it should be. I still however think about those good times plus I still very much so care about all of those people or YOU if you are one of them!!

My husband and I were teens when we met in college and we REALLY lived the college life to the fullest going to social events on campus, sporting events, and even went with tons of friends to the OBX once a year as well! After college we still kept connected with a bunch of college buddies still went to games plus the beach then added a new group of friends through our neighborhood, church, work, and even in my hobby of pageantry! We also got an amazing opportunity to live in Spain where we made more friends plus traveled all over Europe as well! Life was good and we could be very selfish with the time we had! When we entered our current phase if our 12 years together at first before we had children we planned (as we always do with everything) for the changes we knew we had to make including getting a bigger house, saving more money by not going out as much, quitting some volunteer programs we were doing to make more time to take on the responsibilities, and we started getting very excited that we were going to grow our family of two into a family of however many blessings we were given! Finally we did have our first sweet baby in 2009 after praying very hard we could even have children and that is the moment nothing in the world could be better than being parents! Now God has given us our second child who is expected to arrive in around 5 weeks so we are still building our family and feel very thankful that we are continuing this phase of life!!

Cannot wait to see what the next 12 years will hold so thankful for everyone placed in our life over the last 12 especially thankful for our children! I love you bunny ;-) and thank you for being with me for 12 years working through all that life has thrown our way! Miss you and cannot wait till you are home guess it is already about time for you to wake up in Germany while I'm heading for bed here!!

Here we are just a few weeks ago and remember my round face is due to pregnancy :-)

Gender Reveal Party

I love planning parties and especially love having parties! I think now that I am a stay at home mother I love them even more because I do miss being around people everyday therefore any chance I can get to plan and have a party I do it! This Saturday we are going to tell friends and family members the gender of our second baby during a gender reveal party. Honestly I do not care what the gender of this sweet baby is because no matter what I wanted him or her to be healthy plus I love it so very much from even before God blessed us with this pregnancy! In the spirit of celebrating this child's life plus having our first born be involved with something attached with the new arrival we decided to do this party!

Here are some photos from the even which was tons of fun! 

 

Above centerpieces my awesome Mother made from roses and a hydranga plus the vase was purchased at the dollarstore then we sprinkled it's a boy it's a girl confetti around it :)

 

Cake above was a cute idea carried out by a friend of mine that I worked with she does great work!

 

Food table had all kids of pink and blue all over it especially these cute mints my Mother-in-law and the baby's Great Grandmother made!

 

This is the box wrapped in wrapping paper that holds all the pink balloons that were attached to a balloon weight at the bottom so the balloons wouldn't go everywhere plus so they would come out in a cute pattern! 

 

Balloons YAY!! IT'S A GIRL!!!

Above is the invite I made and had printed myself then the image I quickly made just to put on facebook so I could invite most of the people we wanted to invite that way.  Invites are so expensive using publisher or something like that to create your own can save you tons of money that literally will be landing in the trash!

Thank you to everyone that helped make that day special for our sweet baby girl and for our family!  Lots of food and lots of fun times!

Big Sibling Gift

Since we are expecting our second child I have been researching the best way to prepare your first child for the new arrival.  I love our sweet boy so much I want to try as best as I can to get him excited and not feel like he is left out.  In doing do I found several different ways to do this and one way was to get him a big sibling gift.  Choice of presentation and the items included are geared toward your child so I thought I would post what I did for ours:

 

I got all of these things from target, snapfish, and amazon!  The big photo is actually a book showing how much we love him and how he was born and first year photos of his firsts and such!  The items we got him where fun bath soap, recorders, organic granola bars, fun little light up ball toy, the cat in the hat movie, forget me not planting flower kit, stickers, notebook and big fun pens, serpentine blow out party favors, chewing gum, coloring book set, and some clothing for him!!  The bucket was $1 from target's what I call come through the door and spend instant money section! 

 

Hope you enjoyed reading about our big sibling kit!!  If you have any more suggestions on how to prep first children we are all ears please post!!