On Feeling Overwhelmed

Lately, I've been feeling a little overwhelmed.  Overwhelmed, because there are 17 million loads of laundry needing to be washed, dried, folded, and put away.  Which means there may (hopefully) be a single pair of clean socks and underwear per person in this house.

Overwhelmed, because the holidays are fast approaching and I have purchased two gifts.  Two.

Overwhelmed, because Jase's nursery currently looks like this.  And not much can be done about all that stuff until the girls room is cleaned out, and even I wasn't brave enough to take a picture of that disaster zone right now.

Overwhelmed, because the girls are rotating the same few outfits because I have yet to switch out their summer clothes with winter clothes and/or purchase what is needed for colder weather.

Overwhelmed, because four of my eight barstools look like this.

Or this.

Overwhelmed, because there isn't a single free afternoon on our calendar for the next two weeks.

Overwhelmed, because my sink looks like this and the dishwasher is full and we are out of dishwashing detergent.

Overwhelmed, because mama is big and pregnant and the last thing I want to do when I get home are any of the above things.

I think as mama's it is especially easy to feel overwhelmed.  (It seems like daddy's can ignore messes much easier....or maybe that's just Justin.  He doesn't seem to notice anything until I mention it!)  Mama's have laundry and dishes and clothes-purchasing and homework duty and sports cheering and it seems to never just slow up so that we can breathe for one tiny second.

But this is life.  And each glorious, overwhelming mess can also give an opportunity to be thankful.

That laundry?  It's because we go and do and play and get dirty with all the fun things.

The holidays?  They're fun!!! Every year, I refuse to stress---gifts can be purchased and delivered via Amazon prime and I will simply enjoy the time spent with my family.  And those red holiday Starbucks cups. :)

That messy nursery?  The pictures are down because we painted, something I've wanted to do for a long time.  The clothes are piled up because (thank goodness!) those still fit the girls from last year, which means less to buy again this year.  That messy nursery is progress toward a room that is going to hold my sweet baby boy in a little over two months.  And that's a big blessing, ya'll.

Those dishes?  We have never had to go without a meal, or worry where money for our food was going to come from.

So when you are feeling overwhelmed with life, just stop.  Take a deep breath.  Look at all those things that are messy or messed up and find the silver lining.  Because I promise you, there is one.

Sidewalk Chalk Image Crusher

A few weeks ago, the girls and I made some fantastic sidewalk chalk art.  I traced Kyndall, Kyndall traced Libby, and Libby traced me.  That's Libby on the left, Kyndall in the middle, and Big Mama on the right.  There's nothing like having your child trace you in chalk to KILL whatever body image you've got going. Fun times =)

Gearing Up for Baby #3

What is it about welcoming a new baby that makes us want to have everything in perfect condition?  Closets clean and organized, baseboards wiped down, paper essentials stocked up.  (Oh, that's just me?  Great!)  I also decided this was the perfect time to spruce up the house--painting, repairing all those little things that needed to be fixed before we moved in two years ago, rearranging my pictures on the walls.  All fun stuff, right?

Max is such a good supervisor =)

I have really been much more relaxed this time around about getting things ready, but I do have a long list of things I want completed.  That list is slowly getting marked off, partly because several of the tasks are not pregnant-woman friendly so they've been outsourced (bless my dad and Justin).

• Paint nursery.
• Paint girls room and bathroom.
• Paint hallway.
• Paint master bedroom and bathroom.
• Paint living, dining, kitchen area.
• Paint fireplace tiles.
• Replace baseboards as needed.  (Max decided those were better than bones....)
• Wash down/paint exterior doors.
• Wash interior doors.
• Paint master bathroom mirror frames.
• Paint bookshelf.
• Baby bedding on bed.
• Recover cushions on rocking chair for the nursery.
• Clean out girls' closet.
• Clean out MY closet.
• Re-organize the garage.
• Design canvas to hang over the baby bed.

Next week we are out of school on Monday and Tuesday for Fall Break, and we are having a "staycation."  (You know, where you stay home and pretend it's a vacation?  I'm just trying to make it sound more fun, ya'll.)  Hopefully, I can get a good bit of the pregnant-friendly tasks taken care of over the long weekend.

Dealing with the Mean Girls

I happened upon Are You Teaching Your Daughter To Be a Mean girl? the other day completely by chance.  It struck a nerve, though, probably because of the timing in which I read it.

I never dealt with mean girls growing up and Kyndall hasn't had to deal with that yet, either.  I would say it was age--she's only in third grade, after all--but Libby has dealt with it, and she's only a first grader.  I think some personalities are just more susceptible to mean girls.

In response to the article, I started thinking about how we could teach our daughters not to care about the mean girls.  I want my girls to know that yes, there are going to be mean girls (and boys!) in life, but we can't give them power over us.  

I want to build up my girls self-confidence so that they can, in the words of T. Swift, shake it off when someone says something mean to them.  

I want to teach them that they are beautiful.  And smart.  And precious.  And nothing anybody says about them can change what they are worth. 

I want to teach them that it's more important to be beautiful on the inside than the outside.  If someone else wins the prize... the award... the position, it's ok to be disappointed.  But you also have to be happy for the other person.  Especially if that person is considered a friend.

As a mom, it's my job to teach my girls that they won't win everything.  And they aren't supposed to.  And rather than offering them a consolation prize for not winning, I need to teach them to be gracious.

We are lovers of music at my house, so I'm all about these two songs:

Any tips I missed on how to teach our children to deal with mean people?

Pregnancy Update: 13 Weeks

It's Official!! Today, I am 13 weeks pregnant.  Officially past that first trimester mark.  (Photo above courtesy of Kyndall.....it only took 20 tries to get a non-blurry photo!)

Due Date:  February 3, 2015

Baby Size:  3 inches long, about the size of a peach

Sickness:  I am really lucky in that I generally have easy pregnancies.  I have been a little nauseous in the afternoons--somewhere between 3-6 p.m.  Not enough to complain about.  I did have a little bump in the road around 9 weeks where I passed out a few times (like, 3).  When I went to the doctor, my blood pressure was low.  The doctor also said I needed to eat more frequently to keep my blood sugar up, so nothing major.  And since then, I've been eating like a HORSE and I haven't had any more issues.

Energy:  Exhaustion has been my biggest issue this go 'round.  I'm normally pretty high-strung and go on little sleep.  Not now!  Thank goodness it's summertime--I've been going to sleep around 9 or 10 p.m. and sleeping until 9 or 10 a.m.  (My girls are late sleepers too, so it's worked in my favor.)  All that will change in about two weeks when school starts back.  I am happy to say that I can already tell I'm beginning to get some energy back.  Cheers to second trimester!

Cravings:  None really, but if I HAD to say something, I would say salt.  Straight up.  Any salty snacks are right up my alley, but I would love to be able to just pour salt into my hand and eat it that way.  Weird, right?

Phrases heard recently:
From Libby:  "Mama, this baby is making you feisty!"
From Justin, to the Kyndall:  "No honey, we aren't arguing.  Your mother is just pregnant."

Gender:  I know pregnant women say this ALL the time, and most of the time they don't mean it, but I TRULY do not care about the sex of the baby.  I don't even want to find out until he or she gets here.  However, I think I am going to be outvoted.  Even though they will definitely love a little girl--everyone else in my house is pulling for a baby boy.  (Don't tell them this, but based on my symptoms, I really think it's another girl!)  Either way, we should find out in about 3 more weeks!


Thank you of all your prayers and encouraging words about my pregnancy.  I was extremely nervous during the first trimester, and while I'm still a little nervous now, I do feel as if a huge weight was lifted after that 12 week doctors appointment!  Maybe now I can stop worrying Justin about each and every little twinge I feel (which are very numerous the third time around!).

Summer Goals and Projects

We have spent the Memorial Day holiday at the beach with family.  I can't wait to share that with you, but while I'm getting the post ready, I thought I would share a few things that are on our Summer To-Do list.

I am a list-maker.  I have confessed before that I sometimes write tasks on my list after completion just so I can mark them off.  And with summer break only days away, I have a mile-long list of projects I would love to see completed this summer.  And what better way to hold myself accountable than to share them with you?

In no certain order, here are the tasks I would like to see completed this summer.

Keep on keepin' on with our Project Life album.  I am so in love with this project and I can't wait to see the finished album.

Plan for an attic playroom space.

Paint our house.  When we moved in, we didn't paint the walls.  Every wall in our house is the same color, and I'm ready for NEW!  I'm looking at a combination of these colors.

Add a garage mudroom, much like this one.

Complete our 2014 Summer Manifesto (yet to be written), just like we did last summer.  {If you click on that link, forgive the horrible photos.  It is very obviously an old post, before I got all 'professional' and everything.}  The girls and I are still working on the 2014 list, but I'll share soon.

Streamline our "stuff".  After reading only the summary of the book Seven by Jen Hatmaker, as well as a smattering of blog posts, I've decided we have day to much stuff.  Which, apparently, leads to extra stress in my life :) I would love to get rid of our 'excess.'

And that's just the beginning.  (I know, poor Justin, right?)  What is on your summer list?

Friday LInks and Loves, 5th

LINKS

Love and Marriage at InCourage.  Interesting article.  I'm considering hosting a 'book club' type thing with this book.  Would any of you be interested in participating?

This article has been floating around Facebook for a while now and I'm not sure how I feel about it.  Numero Uno:  Should a "pastor's wife" use cuss words?  Numero Dos:  Who made that word a cuss word, anyway?  It's certainly not biblical.  Numero Tres:  While I agree with their 'be your own person' attidute and not beating religion over their kids heads, I can't help but think I would be heartbroken if my children claimed to not believe in God.  As a Christian, I want to see everyone saved, MOST of all, my own children. Feel free to discuss in the comments :)

This touched my heart this week.  We so often TRY to have something to say in the midst of tragedy, when what we need to do is just be there.  Say I'm sorry, hug the hurting, and just be.  Don't try to understand their grief, don't attempt to compare or identify, just be.

Until I read this post, it never crossed my mind that this type of foster care was an option.  Justin and I have been doing lots of foster/adoption research lately, an this idea has stuck with me.

LOVES

I've been super busy this week (I promise that's the last time I'm going to say that), so I haven't been doing much shopping.  I ALWAYS have a few loves though :)

The Antelope In The Living Room.  I've never read this author before, but I think this book, especially, would be an interesting read.

I've been shopping for external hard drives (to keep up with ALL these pictures) and this one is catching my eye right now.  I don't know much about these type things though--any suggestions are welcome!

I have a new shampoo that I am LOVING.  It is Deva Curl No-Poo.  Not only is the name extra funny, it is also awesome on my super-damaged hair.  No-Poo is a zero-lathering shampoo, and I was afraid that it would make my hair oily, or dirty-feeling, but it hasn't.  My hair actually FEELS better than it has in a VERY long time.

Friday Links and Loves, 3rd Ed.

LINKS

National Scrapbooking Day is tomorrow, May 3.  {In a perfect world, I will catch up on all my PL layouts for this year and have them ready for the printer.}  The idea is to create as many layouts as you can on Saturday and post them to social media with the hashtag #NSD10k.  The goal is to 10,000 layouts shared.

11 Things You Can DO to Actively Encourage Another Mother Today.  And while most of these points are pretty obvious (Don't we all, always, help another mother with the door when her hands are full?) this post has my heart.  I'm all about lifting other women up, mothers or not.  Because this game of life, it's a team sport, ya'll.

One Side of A Heart--On Adoption.  Because I have a heart for adoption.  And because there are no 'adoptive parents', we are all just parents, doing the best we can.

Heart Songs <--This is part of a journaling mini-course from Simple Scrapper.  I love this lesson the most because it's these moments, these emotions, that I often struggle to get out and written.

And for a great laugh, watch this video.  The girls and I have been using "Licken, honey, licken" in conversations for WEEKS!

LOVES

These long and lean tanks from Target.  It's a shame how many of these are hanging in my closet!

The Fault in Our Stars.  Still the absolute best book I've read in a long while.  I'm very anxious about the movie though... I just don't know that they can do the book justice.

These yellow chevron outdoor pillows.

We've been working on our backyard/ patio area the past few days, getting ready for some major summer entertaining.  While shopping for new patio furniture, I keep coming back to this Rattan Cool Bar.  A table that doubles as a cooler, AND it's super cute?  I'm totally in!

I'm seriously obsessed with canvas art right now.  I'm loving the above She Knew canvas above.  Dee creates beautiful "faith-inspired" art and I'm coveting several of her pieces right now.

Another canvas on my "To-Buy" list (Yes, I have a to-buy list--I'm quite the list maker nerd!) is this one from Erin Condren.  Her inspirational quote canvases are gorgeous.


Now tell me--what are you LOVING this week?

Future Author I Am (Probably) Not and Other Confessions

Confession:  I like a clean kitchen.  If my kitchen is clean and my sink is empty, I feel like I really have it all together.

Confession:  I sometimes empty the dishwasher of clean dishes just enough to be able to fit the dirty dishes from the sink.

Confession:  I have two pair of the exact same kind of jeans.  (American Eagle, skinny, if you're wondering!)

Confession:  I wear these jeans WAY too many times in between washings.

Confession:  I would LOVE to be an author, but I probably won't be.  I am a great lover of words, but not a good writer of words.  I enjoy nothing more than getting lost in a story.  You might think this would be complimentary to writing a good story, but I've found that it doesn't work that way.

I can dream up all sorts of scenes and story lines and fill several pages with the tellings, but that's as far as it goes.  And as hard as I try, I cannot string those scenes together to make a complete story.

Thankfully, I had the smarts to make my 30 Before 30 Bucket List item say "Write a book.  Or part of a book."  Technically, I can cross this one out because I have written more than my fair share of "parts of a book".  I hope one day I can knit these parts together into a story that begs to be read.

Confession: I throw important things in the trash ALL.THE.TIME.  I have thrown away the new credit cards that came in the mail, too many need-to-be-paid bills to count, a brand new pair of shoes, and so, so much more.  This is probably my #1 flaw, if you ask my husband.

Confession:  I have not ran in more than a month.  That is the longest stretch without running since I revived my love affair with running post-high school.

Seriously, how many 'wears' do your jeans get in between washings?

On Broken Dreams

Ok, "On Broken Dreams" is a tad dramatic for what this post is really all about.  Don't get too worked up about that title yet, until I explain :)

This weekend, I was supposed to run the Country Music Half Marathon in Nashville, TN.  I paid the race entry fee and EVERYTHING.  And I didn't go.  For several reasons, but mainly because I didn't train for the run.  Several weeks ago when it was time to start upping my mileage and all that good stuff, I made the conscious decision not to do it.  The part that makes me the most sick about this is that I also forfeited my chance to see Charles Esten, Clare Bowen and Chase Rice in concert.  This decision also meant altogether failure on my 30 Before 30 list.  Next year when this race rolls around, I'll be the big 3-0.

You are probably wondering what made me skip this race, especially after having paid for it.  Wouldn't shelling out the money beforehand be a good motivation to get the training in?  Well, you would think so.  I have several excuses and I'm not going to get into them all here-- I simply didn't do the work necessary to run the race.

Which leads me to the whole 30 Before 30 list, or Bucket Lists, in general.  As I look back over my list, that I created almost 2 years ago, I see lots of issues.

• I have now seen the color run and have no desire to run it.  It's fun to watch, but I'm not interested in having all that colored chalk sucked up my nostrils.  No thanks.
• Doing the Avon 2-day Breast Cancer walk is a HUGE commitment.  One that I still want to do, but will take several years of planning and saving, none of which I have done yet.  Add to that the fact that my partner-in-crime is expecting a little one in a few months, and we are going to put this off for a while.
• I remember vividly making this list, wanting to push myself to run a longer distance, and thinking the Country Music Half looked like so much fun.  And that is the entire thought process that went into adding this item to the list.  So really, if I break it WAY down, my bottom line was running a half and I've done that.  Twice.  And while I still want to do more long races, I feel like I could cross this off my list.....   
• Other big ticket (i.e.: priced) items like "Visit New Orleans" and "See Ground Zero" are still definitely things I want to do, I just don't see them happening in the next 8 months (that's when I turn 30.. shhhh).

So all this rambling about broken dreams and 30 Before 30 lists has led me to this:  I'm renaming my list.  (I know, that was a lot of build up for nothing.)  30 Before 30 is soon going to become my Bucket List.  And I'm allowing myself the freedom to change or edit this list however I want to, because it's my list and I can do that.  So there.

And now I'm curious-- 30 Before 30, 40 Before 40, 100 Before 100, Bucket List (whatever list you have)---what things are on YOUR list?

Friday Links and Loves, 2nd Ed.

I'm starting a new trend, ya'll.  Let's see if I can stick with it, for once :)  Each Friday I'll do a Links and Loves post, where I share everything I'm loving right now, whether it be a post I've read or a product I'm digging.  One day, I might even come up with a cute 'linky' image and everything.  You can see Links and Loves, 1st edition here.

LINKS

100 Ways You Know You're A Mom by Lisa-Jo Baker.

This post by Emily P. Freeman.  I've read her book Grace for the Good Girl and it's utterly inspiring.

What Scares Me More Than Being Inadequate by Kristin.  A story about saying "yes".

When Ordinary is its own Kind Of Brave by Lisa Jo Baker.  Honestly, I could link all of her posts.  Every.Single.One of them.

Throwback Thursday Stories, courtesy of the Mom Creative.  I cannot tell you how much my scrapbooking heart loves this.  Pulling out an old photo and telling its story?  That's my passion, ya'll.

If You Wouldn't Say It About A Boob Job.  Hilarious video about having adoption conversations. You know, if you wouldn't say it about a boob job, don't say it to adoptive parents.

This is How I Feel posts by Roo at Neon Fresh.  This girl is hilarious and her TIHIF posts are full of GIFS that she has captioned herself.  Caution:  This link is Volume 51, meaning you could get lost in hours of hilarity.  #RollOnTheFloorLaughing

LOVES

I caved and bought the purse I was seriously crushing on last week, and I'm so glad that I did.  It's just big enough to hold that gorgeous Erin Condren planner (By the way, EC is unveiling the new 2015 planner designs in just a few weeks!) without being TOO big and bulky.  The yellow color makes me happy, but it also comes in black or bright orange.  Now for a new wallet.....

This refrigerator pitcher set.  I don't know about ya'll, but the shelf space in my fridge is always overflowing.  We are drinkers at my house.  Between the gallons of milk, pitchers of tea, and jugs of juices, I could really make use of that extra space in our fridge door.  And to top it all off, these pitchers are just so pretty.

The Naked 3 palette.  I received it as a Christmas gift, and struggled using it at first.  Now that I've had it, and played with it, for a few months, I'm loving it :)

(photo from OGX website)

OGX hair products.  Specifically this shampoo and this conditioner, and this hair oil.  I have bad hair. I mean, REALLY bad hair.  I've tried vitamins, treatments, coconut oil.... you name it.  I've been using OGX products for several weeks and it is the first time in a long time I am seeing improvement.  OGX products are organic, which means they don't have all those bad chemicals, like sulfates.

Donut Shop coffee.  I normally purchase these from Target, but recently I've been ordering from Amazon with my free shipping.  I think I save a total of 25 cents by doing this, but hey, every penny counts, right?  And if decaf is your thing, the Donut Shop decaf blend is really good, too.

Your turn! What are you loving right now?

Throwback Thursday Stories: Vegas, Baby!

Linking up with The Mom Creative again for #TBTStories.  My scrapbooking, memory-keeping heart is loving this!

This photo was taken almost 9 years ago.  Justin and I had been married around a year when we were invited to fly out to Las Vegas to watch Supercross Finals.  That's dirt bike racing, just so you know.   And back when Travis Pastrana was still racing.  It was our first "real" trip as a married couple.

We flew out on a Friday morning and flew back home on Monday, so it was quite the whirlwind trip.  The race was on a Saturday night and one of my favorite memories is of the jets flying overhead before the races began.  I had never been in a stadium where jets flew that low and it was amazing.

While in Las Vegas, we drove over the Hoover Dam, which is where the above photo was taken.  It was breath-taking.  And humbling, to know that so many lives (112, according to Wikipedia) were lost in its construction.

We also did a little site-seeing on the strip in Las Vegas.  Justin's cousin, Greg, lived in Las Vegas at the time and was more than happy to be our personal tour guide.

I'm so thankful that we had this experience, because it's not something I see us doing anywhere in the near future.  Las Vegas just isn't a place to travel with young children :).   Visiting Las Vegas DOES happen to be on my 30 Before 30 list, too!

What travel spots are on your bucket list?

Friday Links and Loves, 1st edition

Things I'm loving lately.  Disclaimer:  Some links are affiliates, which means if you click on them, or make purchases through them, I get credit at NO extra cost to you.  All opinions are 100% my own.

My Erin Condren life planner.  The only problem I have is that my purse isn't big enough to hold it.  Guess I'll just have to find a new purse :)

This Fossil Explorer Flap purse, in yellow.  It just makes me happy.  It's also just big enough to hold that awesome life planner :)

This Scarfand infinity scarf in red.  I don't typically 'do' scarves, but I'm loving the lightweight fabric of this one!

My Amazon Prime membership.  Each month I get 2 free books-- one pre-release and one borrowed from the Amazon Lending Library.  The girls are loving the instant streaming videos, and it's much cheaper overall than Netflix.  I've also put the free 2-day shipping to good use!

This Ulta lip crayon in American Girl.  It's a very neutral color I am such a lipstick/lip gloss addict, but right now this is definitely my favorite!

American Girl

Project Life Kraft edition. I'm loving the matching album, so it's next on my list of purchases. You can use these page protectors if you are doing the print version, and it's so easy to print your pictures and just slide them in the slips. If you need more project life info, check out Becky Higgins blog.  She has lots of daily inspiration.  Or you can see my posts here and here.

Keeping It Real

About 2 weeks ago (OK, maybe 3...) I started "Spring Cleaning" around the house.  I started in Kyndall's room and moved through there pretty quickly.  I boxed up clothes for donation, separated what I wanted to keep for Libby, and laid out a few nicer things for consignment.

Then I moved on to Libby's room.  And that's where I got stuck.  The spring-cleaning-mood left me.  I had all the passed-down clothes from Kyndall in a pile.  All the winter clothes that would probably still fit next year had a pile.  The clothes that no longer fit and were headed for donation had a pile.  The clothes for consignment had a pile.  And I stopped.

Then I avoided her room like the plague for the last, yes, THREE weeks.  When the cleaning lady came, I hung my head in shame and told her to skip that room.

I had one foot in her room yesterday when the doorbell rang.  Thank goodness for unexpected company.

The truth is, I'm not really sure what to do with all this.  I have always kept most of Kyndall's still-decent clothes, but Libby very rarely ever wears them.  When it's time for new outfits, I feel guilty just buying for K.  So WHY do I feel like I need to keep them?  There is no ROOM.  I should pass them on, but I can't.  What if she NEEDS that shirt?  Or those pants? (Insert dramatic sigh here.)

I'm sharing this with you because I am determined to get a handle on the chaos this weekend.  Hopefully, tomorrow night, but let's just be realistic here.  But I need help.  

How do you organize your kids clothing?  

Do you keep hand-me-downs, or pass them on?

PS:: Check back tomorrow--I'm announcing the WINNER of the Erin Condren giveaway!

Career Change

I've decided that as much as our family loves to travel, I need to be a travel blogger. While looking up Universal information a few weeks ago, I came across blogs like Tip Junkie and I am SO jealous. I need that to be my new career.

Disney World, Hampton Inn (because it's our favorite), Sandals resort, Royal Carribean--hit me up! I'll travel, write the review, and get you LOTS of business, I'm sure! 

Seriously though, traveling for free (as my job, or with a good discount) is my dream job. What's yours?

Clean Eating, Take Two

With all the traveling we've been doing lately, my clean eating train has been derailed.  I've done pretty well through the week, it's the weekends (when we are traveling) that get me!  Eating clean on the road is TOUGH!!

We fully intend to stay home the next few weeks, so I'm jumping back on the clean eating train.  I'm even going to ATTEMPT to take out that pesky daily Dr. Pepper.  No promises, though. :)

In addition to clean(er) eating, I'm gearing up for my next half marathon--the St. Jude Country Music Half in Nashville, Tennessee.  If you've been reading my blog, you know that I had major hip pain after my last half three weeks ago.  I haven't run much since then, but what little I have ran, there has still been hip pain.  Nothing too bad, but enough to make me worry that it'll get worse once I start longer runs.  I've spent a lot of time the past few weeks stretching, and I really thing that is helping.

I'm also going to make a point to cross train.  I think that was part of my problem as well--those hip muscles weren't used to anything other than a steady run on a treadmill.  I'm going to run 3-4 days a week, with one long run on Sunday.  The other few days, I'm going to do my friend Jillian Michael's Yoga Meltdown DVD (which I love) and attempt lifting a few weights.

Hopefully, when I check back in with our progress, I'll have some good news to report.  And maybe even a few good recipes to share!

Exciting News!

I have exciting news!! This year, I have been chosen as an Athleta Esprit de She ambassador.  I'll be participating in the RUN Atlanta 10k on November 6 in Atlanta, Georgia.  They offer both a 5k and 10k.  I would LOVE for you to join me.  You can get more info here.

You may also view other ambassadors and their stories here.  You can also purchase Esprit de She gear here.  This is my favorite.

Esprit de She is partnered with Girls on the Run.  Per their website:

Girls on the Run is a transformational physical activity-based positive youth development program for 8 to 13 year-old girls designed to develop and enhance girls’ competencies to successfully navigate life experiences. At Girls on the Run, trained and supportive coaches and volunteers teach life skills through dynamic, conversation-based lessons and running games. The program culminates with the girls being physically and emotionally prepared to complete a celebratory 5K running event. The goals of the program are to develop and improve competence, unleash confidence through accomplishment, develop strength of character, respond to others and oneself with care and compassion, create positive connections with peers and adults and make a meaningful contribution to community, all while establishing a lifetime appreciation of health and fitness.

I am so proud to be part of such an amazing organization and I can't wait to see what 2014 has in store!

Celeb Look-Alike

This week, we've been doing a lot of this:

Getting back into the routine (this is the first full week of school since before Christmas) has been tough!  After school, dinner, and homework, we all just want to crash.  On top of all that, K got the nasty stomach bug on Tuesday afternoon and was up sick ALL night.  I don't think I've caught up on sleep yet, and it's already Thursday!

Meme cooked dinner on Wednesday night and the girls played a few games after.  The games included "Mother, May I?", which is now the girls' favorite game!

In case you were wondering, my whole resolution to cook more is going really well.  In the past two weeks I've made potato soup, taco salad, lemon garlic shrimp with veggies, spaghetti, and taco casserole.  And bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches (my go-to quick meal).  I would've done more but my mom cooked one night last week and Meme one night this week.  That still counts as healthy meals, so I'll take it :)

I definitely want to work on making healthier meals for our family.  Other than shrimp night, we didn't have many veggies at all. <--That's my next goal.

In other really important news, the girls and I all found our celebrity matches.  I am addicted to this new app I found--it's the My Heritage app and you can get it here.  You can do lots of important stuff with it, like explore your family tree and research public records, but I like the MyCeleb option best.  It scans your photos to find your celebrity look-alike.

Kyndall's face double was Bunko Kanasawa (whoever that is), but she also matched with Jodie Foster, Shirley Temple, and Matsu Takaka.  (I find it funny that 2 of the 4 are Asian.  Those traits must be strong!)

Libby matched with Daveigh Chase.  Her runner-up matches were Anna Popplewell, Fann Wong, and Shirley MacLaine.

My face match was Jessica Simpson.  Runner-up faces included Ali Landry, Queen Rania and Kristen Bell.

And now your lives are complete.  You're welcome.

Weekend Wrap-Up

We have had a super low-key weekend and it has been wonderful! On Saturday, we slept in (ok, only until 7:30, but that's better than usual) and then had chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. Chocolate chip pancakes and biscuits with chocolate gravy are our go-to weekend breakfasts. After lounging around for a little while, we made a quick run to town for groceries. We made Justin take us to Ulta to get some girly things (specifically makeup for me--thank you youtube makeup girls!) and then came home for the rest of the day. We put our pajamas back on at 2pm and it was amazing.

This is what happens when I try to read. How am I supposed to read with his big head in the way? (Good news for him--I love his snuggles!)

Sunday I met Anna at 5 am for our long run.  I got in 10 miles, not the scheduled 13, but my body just wasn't feeling it.  Then it was time for church and after that, my favorite home cooked meal. Grilled tri-tip steak fajitas. I'll admit, part of the reason this is one of my favorite meals is because Justin gets to do all the work :) Justin's parents came to eat and after lunch, we all loaded up and took a trip to Krispy Kreme (a 30 minute trip). The girls got free donuts for each 'A' on their report card.

Somehow we got lucky and wound up with 2 dozen free donuts, plus a dozen assorted that we did pay for. We'll be having donuts for days!

Sunday night brought AWANA and prep for the week.  We started out last week with 2 degree temps, reached the low 60's this weekend, and are expecting snow and 20 degree temps next week.  This Alabama weather has seriously got to get a grip on her bi-polarness!

What exciting thing did you do on your weekend?

Piggy-bank fund for Boston Marathon Treadmill

It's official, guys.  I am strongly coveting my own Boston Marathon Treadmill by ProForm.  I mean, how pretty is this?

Doesn't that just make you want to go for a run?  And as many miles as I've logged on my cheap-o treadmill, I think I deserve it!  Too bad one of our resolutions is to pay off some bills before making any non-necessary purchases.  (And I tried to convince J that this WAS necessary.  He wasn't buying it.)  That being said, I am setting a new goal--putting money in my piggy bank to buy this beauty.  By the time I've saved enough, this will probably be much cheaper, too! Ha!

My favorite thing about this treadmill?  The ifit technology.  It combines with Google Maps to let you run virtually in several locations.  The treadmill will automatically adjust it's incline with that of the route.  Obviously, the Boston Marathon is a route option.  London, New York, Honolulu-many of the most elite marathons in the world have a route on ifit.  You can also choose scenic locations--the Golden Gate Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, Washington D.C., Mt. Rushmore, the French Riviera, the Oregon Coast.  The 2012 Olympic Torch Run route.  I could go on and on. (And trust me, to J, I have gone on and on and on!)

It's as close as you can come to running outside without actually running outside.  And I'm so jealous of every single person who has one.  One day.  One day, I'll have my own :)