I'm not much for resolutions or even goals for a new year, but this year I've decided to just face it all - the things that scare me, the things that are hard, the uncertainties and insecurities.  I want to look those things - the big and the little - in the eye and choose to see the good and see the truth.  It might sound strange so to give an example, I've had a small insecurity about a friendship recently, and instead of letting things go haywire in my mind or become bitter/cynical towards them, I found the root of the problem - that I'm worried I'm not good enough, or not as good of a mom as her, just that there's things lacking in ME - and claimed every truth I know against that: I'm accepted as a daughter of the King and that's the only security I will ever need, and I can love this friend fully because I have that freedom.  It actually really helped my attitude.  Now to just apply that to every other little crazy thought in my brain :)

The other area I'm committing to is that of my health/fitness.  I'm kind of in a tough place cause I'm really hoping we get pregnant this year (though we're not yet ready), and I struggle with the idea of being fit and pregnant, ha.  With Hadley I gained a TON of weight - and though I'd like to look back and think about how it was all water weight, or I just couldn't help it....I really could, and the bottom line is I gave myself license to eat whatever the heck I wanted.  Hence the 60lb weight gain.

So this year, I've been trying to eat cleaner but I'm still indulging in some of my bad habits, like French Vanilla coffee creamer (as much as I want....I just cannot ration that stuff.  I won't drink my coffee then, and it's just not worth it to me to give that up) and the occasional Diet Coke.  And of course, my wine :)  I've been back at the gym, running on that dreadmill and getting more into the weight machines.  I don't have a goal of weight loss, per se, just to drop a pants size so I'm truly back to my pre-pregnancy size.

Here's been some of my meals -

Top to Bottom:
Black Bean Dip & Low Carb Tortillas cut into chips and baked

Scrambled eggs, spinach and sweet potatoes w/ Sriracha

Skinnytaste's Sugar Snap Pea, Chicken and Carrot stir fry

PB2 Banana Protein smoothie

Fat Free Greek Yogurt w/ Kashi Go Lean, dried berries and a drizzle of agave

The tough thing for me is that I'm a Southern girl at heart and will always love foods like mac and cheese, biscuits and gravy, BUTTER, full fat mayo/yogurt/sour cream/etc, but the bottom line is that I just can't eat it the way I want to.  I can already tell that my metabolism is slower than it was a few years ago so I recognize that in order to maintain a healthy weight I need to learn good eating habits now.  

Well, I'm off to pick up my house for the 15th time today.  That's one of the drawbacks of having a tiny house - it can feel messy within minutes when you don't have a playroom or office!  Happy weekend!

Our Little Christmas

This post is gonna be one big FAIL because I have zero, zilch, nada pictures to share of our holidays.  WOMP WOMP.  But to be perfectly honest....it was a pretty unremarkable year, celebration-wise.  Brad and I didn't exchange gifts, really, I bought myself a vest from Land's End and I think he's buying some jeans or something, and then in a few weeks we're heading out of town for a little getaway that's going to be our "Christmas present."

As far as Hadley goes, she did alright.  Who knows how it will change over the years but Brad and I firmly believe that we don't want to instill in her that Christmas is about "things" - I grew up this way and experience major disappointment each Christmas now, if you want to know the honest truth.  We will always buy her gifts, of course, but we won't be spending hundreds upon hundreds of dollars on her (or any of our children).  This Christmas we bought her three books, a couple Melissa and Doug toys, bubble bath and bath crayons and that's it.  And let me tell you...the girl was MORE THAN HAPPY with just the wrapping paper so that right there is reason enough to not blow all our money on toys.  She also got some nice things from her grandparents, like a baby doll and baby stroller (that by the way, she wedged herself into last week and I almost called the fire dept when we nearly couldn't get her out) and a VTech car that converts into a scooter.  One of the most thoughtful gifts she received was an antique rocking horse that Brad's aunt restored by hand painting it, adding hair and stamping her name on it.


Even though I didn't get pictures we did a video of Hadley opening gifts from her Grandma and Grandpa, it was kinda cute cause she got a blanket that her Grandma made for her and all she wanted to do was play "Peek a Boo" with it...girl loves attention!



So!  That was Christmas.  It was a nice couple days but extremely busy (I felt like I was in the kitchen cooking the entire time that we weren't at gatherings or having people over).

Tonight Brad and I are going on a MUCH NEEDED date - seriously, I can't remember the last time just me and him went out.  I am so excited to fix my hair, put on some makeup and a pretty top and hold his hand and flirt and not have to worry about my child screaming at the top of her lungs or throwing toys or trying to climb out of the high chair.  Thank ya Jesus!!!

Merry Christmas!

The holidays catch up to ya, don't they??  I don't have much to say, just hoping that I can get back on the 'ol blogging train next year!

Here's our Christmas card for the year, and to the friends of mine that didn't receive one...well, I ran out of envelopes and then it got too late.  But I love you all and just pretend this came in your mailbox, ha!

And just cause she's so darn cute, here's a couple shots from our Christmas mini photo session with In Full Bloom Photography:

May we all remember tomorrow that Jesus is why we celebrate, and that He is THE GOOD NEWS!  Merry Christmas!

The 'Ol Bullet Points Post

• The baby's sleeping, the dishwasher's going, the laundry is started and I'm sitting down with a hot cup of coffee.  These are the moments when I stop and realize that my life is so good, and I'm so thankful for the little things.  Mostly thankful that I'm home.
  
• I went to the chiropractor yesterday for the first time.  Right after I had Hadley I started feeling this tingling feeling in my right upper back area.  It was so weird and I thought it had something to do with my C-section surgery (why I felt that way, I have no clue...this is why I would be an awful doctor).  I mentioned it to my doctor and she thought it was a nerve issue, but I never had it addressed until yesterday.  The tingling has continued and has started to even spread a little, so I wanted to get it taken care of.  Sure enough, the chiropractor said I'm all locked up in that area.  Today I'm in a little bit of pain but I'm so happy it's getting fixed (and that I don't have a degenerative disease, which is what I was certain it was...again, terrible doctor).
  
• For Thanksgiving we're going to Brad's parents house and I think I'm going to bring Barefoot Contessa's Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms.  They're stuffed with sweet Italian sausage, mascarpone and parmesan cheese, garlic, scallions, etc.  Sounds so good!
  
• This last weekend I was on my own for most of it since Brad was out hunting, so I took Hadley out for a little coffee date....
  
  

We actually had a good time.  I say "actually" because she's not in the easiest age to take out to restaurants, but she sat and ate her grilled cheese while I drank my latte and then we shared a scone :)  Sweet girl.

• Last Christmas I decided I was tired of my ornaments - I bought them about 4 years ago and they're so pretty but I'm just bored with them.  This is why I don't paint colors on my walls or furniture!  I get bored with it or end up not liking it after a while.  So this year I'm trying to decide how I can decorate my tree without ornaments but still make it pretty.  Shoot, with a 15 month old and a puppy I will probably not even want ornaments on my tree, ha.
  

Welp, my laundry's done so I need to get crackin'.  Here's to Wednesday - which means its almost Thursday, which means it's almost the weekend!!

Two of My Favorites

When it comes to my in-laws, I count myself super, super blessed.  They're honestly some of the most wonderful people I've ever met, and it's really an honor to call them my family.  I love them all equally, but I gotta admit that my two brothers-in-law hold a special place in my heart.  Before we got pregnant with Hadley, we spent hours upon hours with these two going to bars, concerts, on trips, hanging out at our house...we did SO much with them, and they were seriously my favorite people to hang out with.  But then they both moved out West to work and broke mine and Brad's hearts :(

But anyway!  They've been home for the last week and it's been so great having them around.  We all went out on Saturday night and I was able to get a (terrible quality, that's bar lighting for you) picture of the 4 of us -

\
And this may be my new favorite picture of all time - Hadley with her uncles.

She was sitting on Caleb's lap and so I had the thought to get a quick shot of it.  I was saying, "Hadley, look at momma" and seriously out of nowhere she just lights up with that cheesy grin.  KILLS ME.  Needless to say, they're great with their baby niece and we hate the fact that they're not around more to see her grow up.

BUT - we're planning our next trip....Nashville!!  Be still my heart.

Five on Friday!

//ONE//
As a rule, I pretty much hate WalMart.  Mostly because I feel like they could be SO much better than Target - I mean, they practically own the world - and they just settle for crap clothes, crap decor, crap EVERYTHING.  Seriously, I am there like every other day and I never ever see anything cute there.  Now granted, the WalMart in our town is a bare bones, nothing-special WalMart.  I've been surprised at other ones to see that occasionally they do carry cute stuff.  So imagine my surprise when I found this cute shirt there this week:

It's basically a dolman tee but I'm calling it a swing tee.  It's loose, super soft, covers the hiney, but is fitted in the arms.  It also has a wider neckline, which I'm a fan of.  I bought it in black and also an emerald green.  These kind of shirts are so my style now, mainly because I'm all about hiding that post-baby belly (that I still have, ha).  BEST PART - it's $9.94.  Here's the link to it: Women's Dolman Sleeve Tee.

//TWO//

This would be my small town version of shopping at Target with a Starbucks drink - that's a McDonald's latte at WalMart.  Find joy in the little things, right?!?

//THREE//

I finally bought a Keurig.  I felt bad because Brad had actually bought me the Starbucks Verismo last year for Christmas and to be honest, I really like that machine but it's annoying cause you can only buy the coffee pods for it at Macy's or Bed Bath and Beyond (and Starbucks).  The closest I am to those stores is at least an hour and a half and inevitably I run out every time without having more on hand (even though every time I go to the big city I spend around $60 on those stupid things).  Anyway....that's all to say that I'm ECSTATIC to finally own one of these - I can buy the pods at WalMart, and have a much bigger variety to choose from.  On a side note, Starbucks really dropped the ball with their machine, it's pretty pitiful when you go to Bed Bath and Beyond and see the Verismo section - it's like half a shelf.  JOKE.

//FOUR//
I bought a Christmas dress for Hadley from BabyGap on eBay for $10....

It's in perfect condition!  It's a little bit big though and I have to get a sweater for her to wear with it.  I also bought her a little dress from Baby Gap on super sale:

She wore it in some Christmas pictures we took recently that I can't WAIT to share.  I love it!

//FIVE//
We're maybe - MAYBE - thinking about doing a beach vacation without Hadley sometime this spring and are trying to find some places with good deals in Mexico.  We're looking for an all-inclusive that isn't too pricey but has decent food....I'm open to suggestions!!!

Um, hello

Yes, it's been a long time.  Jumping right in!

We've been busy around here.  We've had birthday celebrations (mine!), Halloween, random...things, and now the HOLIDAYS!!  I'm pretty excited for them this year.

Here's a shot from my birthday weekend -

We got a sitter for the night and went out to eat, then went to my favorite little bar in town for some live music.  It was fun, but the one "thing" with my birthday - Oct 28th - is that we're always celebrating it the same weekend as Halloween, which I just do NOT get into.  Not for any particular reason, it's just not my thing to get all dressed up.  Hence the person in the giant sombrero behind us.  No, we were not at a Mexican restaurant.  (Ha - just be glad that it wasn't the girl who dressed up as Miley Cyrus a la VMA's in the background....)

Then it was Halloween, which we dressed our little lady up for -

 She was a monkey!  This was taken at Brad's work.  She was so dang cute in that little costume.  Here's a family shot.  It's only awkward cause Hadley wasn't havin' anything to do with that little hood and was squirming all over to take it off.  Side note, my husband has some HUGE hands -

Then we've just had random play dates, but I've discovered that Hadley loves her a dog.  Case in point...

The above picture is with my girlfriend's Lab, and the bottom picture is with another girlfriend's GREAT DANE.  She loved them both!  (Also a side note, please note the stone fireplaces in each house.  Yes, we live in the Northwoods, haha!)

As for just different "life" things, there's not been too much going on.  I'm in a weird place of trying to decide if we want to start trying to grow the family or wait another 6 months or so.  I'm much more in the "WAIT" camp but I'm also 32, so....
I've also started up running again and man....I MISSED it.  So dang much.  It's a little funny when I get on the treadmill and I'm starting my pace at 5.6mph, cause prior to the baby coming along I was makin' hay at 6mph and above (NOT that fast by any stretch but you realize how much faster it is when you're starting at 5.6, you know?!?).  But you start where you start, and I'm just loving the feeling again of going.  Even better than that stupid treadmill, I ran outside this last weekend and it seriously felt like a drug.  Stupid to say, but in my opinion, if you love running you know the feeling.

Well, I think that's about it!  Really not much happening around here.  Hadley is growing and changing every day, some of her words are "baby", "bottle" (even though we're not on bottles anymore, this is what she calls her milk sippy...just sayin'!), "pretty" ("pitty" - TOO CUTE), "dog", and the other day I swear she tried to say her name.  She's a climbing machine, too - literally can't take my eyes off her for long cause when I do, she's on top of the couch arm trying to turn the lights off!

And finally....because I'm thinking she's starting to love her Daddy a little more than she loves her Momma...

Makes my heart about burst, I swear.  Every girl needs her a good Daddy, and Hadley hit the jackpot with hers.

On that note, I'm gonna go run my bath and enjoy the peace and quiet around here!  Hope everyone's having a good week :)