Working Mama

It's official guys, I've stepped into the shoes of a working mama. I am now a cashier/fragrance consultant for Sephora. I've only wanted to work here since I started playing around with makeup as a preteen. It was a very long interview/training process and I've finally actually begun work.
Don't worry, my running has still continued. Last week I completed my first ever 10 mile run!! I also PR'd on my 5K and 10K. I've been working at finding a good run/walk interval balance and it has really been improving my times. I also signed up for my half marathon today!! I will be running the Half in Newport, RI in October. I can't believe it!
I've also been crazy busy finishing off the planning of mine and John's vow renewal. We are less than a month away!! Whoa! Right now it's just wincing and handing over the money we owe the vendors. I've still got to go back to NY for one more dress fitting. I also need to finish putting together favors and painting my guest book.
So, I've missed you bloggers, but alas I'm a busy girl. I think I will make a new and awesome return once the vow renewal is over.

-Lindsey

Why Do I Run??

Heather over at Run Like a G! posed a big question on her latest blog post: Why do you run? I figured that I would make my own blog post because the answer just isn't simple. So here goes...

I run because it makes me feel good. There is nothing better than the feeling of accomplishment when you hit your longest milage or you PR (hit a personal record). After every run I feel like a female warrior. I look at pictures of skinny girls in clothing catalogs and think, "I bet I could outrun her."

Victory!!

I run because, hello scenery! Since moving to New England last year I've really enjoyed checking out new places through my runs and races. I've discovered some really cool parts of my home town that I never would have known about had I not run past it. 

My view of the Thames River.

I run because it's a great way to hang out with friends. I've had so much fun on my runs with my friends from here in CT and my friends in NY. It's such an easy way to be able to chat and enjoy an outing at the same time. Running races with my friends from the gym has also been super enjoyable, they are such a great support system!

Lastly, and most importantly: I run to set a good example for my daughter and any children we may have in the future. I want my daughter to understand that exercise is a normal and most times fun activity. That being healthy makes for a happy individual. Some of the most unhappy and unenthusiastic people I know do not workout or treat their bodies well. I'll be at every finish line cheering my daughter on if she chooses to run. I will cheer her on for any type of physical activity she chooses to pursue.

Me and baby girl tearing up the park.

How can you not feel an immense amount of pride and self confidence? I also get to be a proud wife because my husband just finished his THIRD half marathon for 2014. How amazing is that?

Why do you run?

-Lindsey

Healthy Fueling

Something that has come up in conversation A LOT lately is how I fuel my body. There are so many different schools of thought on what's best diet wise. I am part of the school of thought that each individual needs to fuel their body differently.
Here's an easy comparison: A 200 lb man who is a body builder will surely need a higher caloric and protein intake than a 130lb woman who is a dancer. Pretty easy distinction there.
I am a 178 lb woman who runs long distances and works out 5 days per week on average. I need to take in a certain amount of calories to keep going. I really need to take in some good healthy carbs in order to keep going on my high cardio based workouts. So you see, each person needs to customize the way they eat to the way they live.
Here are some things that I've been enjoying in creating a healthier eating style.

1. My Garden- Oh I so love my garden. Husband put a lot of hard work in to build it. We are currently growing 2 types of lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, squash, and various herbs.

2. Nature Box (In no way is this blog endorsed by Nature Box, I just love them). Each month I get a box with 5 full size bags of healthy and delicious snacks. This deters me from even entering the chip/cookie aisles in the grocery store. They're easy to grab for something quick and portable for road trips/play dates. Note: If you are at all interested in trying Nature Box please let me know, I can get you $10 off your first box!! :)

3. Smoothies- I love smoothies so much, they are easy to throw together and take along. You can put any number of things in them based on what type of nutritional value you are looking for. Here is a recipe of mine that's easy and tasty:

Strawberry Mango Coconut Water Smoothie

1 cup of frozen strawberries

1 cup of frozen mangos

2 cups of coconut water

1/4 cup of plain greek yogurt with honey

Put the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth. So refreshing and hydrating for a yummy summer treat.

What are your favorite healthy snack hacks? What are your favorite smoothie recipes?

-Lindsey

7 Mile Run Recap

I set out for a run last Friday, a 6 mile run. As I ran down the hill towards the park on the harbor my legs screamed out in pain. Shin splints, I had them. I had only made it 1.65 miles into my run and I sat down at a picnic table wanting to cry. I started my self pity party and walked back to my house. I had finally overdone it, my legs gave in. John immediately got the ice packs and the pain reliever and I put my legs up. It's ok to take a break. Sometimes pushing through the pain just isn't an option.
I still did my cross training with my wonderful trainer and buddies at the gym. My arms and legs are becoming toned and strong. So, it's not all bad.
Today, after a weekend of running rest and relaxation I strapped on my running shoes and readied myself for my first 7 mile run. I was not confident about it at all. I will be honest, it was probably one of my slowest long runs because again my legs were screaming. I ignored it, I pushed on. I got to mile 3.5 and took a quick break for GU gel (ew ew ew, it tasted like warm vanilla pudding. I think I'll stick to Clif shot bloks). I started to run again after much gagging and retching due to the GU treat that I had just had. My leg pain had gone away! I felt a renewed sense of fight and battled on through the second 3.5  leg.
When I got finished I felt amazing. I felt like I had climbed the Everest of running. 9 miles is going to be my big accomplishment, that will be the farthest I've ever run.

I've had some weird  running "symptoms":

Bloody shoe- Sometimes in the middle of a long run I feel like my shoe is filling up with blood. I don't know why it would be, but I can't shake the feeling. It never really is though.

Phantom Blister- Usually under my right big toe I'm certain that there's bound to be a monster of a blister forming when I end my run. Not so, it's never there.

GU Gel almost barfing-I downed a vanilla GU gel today at mile 3.5 and I immediately spent the next 2 minutes retching and gagging on the side of the road. It was probably a very attractive sight.

The "This is my Jam" running push- Sometimes my iPhone plays a really ridiculous song, and it almost always comes during the last 1-2 miles of my run. Some favorites "Magic Dance"-The Labyrinth Soundtrack "Work Bitch"-Britney Spears and really any 80s classic rock anthems.

What are some odd running symptoms you've dealt with?

-Lindsey

26 Years of Crazy

Hey Guyssss! So since we last spoke/wrote/read? I am another year older. I had a fabulous birthday filled with well wishes and relaxing fun. John and Evie woke me up with awesome gifts.

This is the print he bought me, I fell in love with it in a Gallery in Mystic. 

I was also given the gift of a tattoo which I have yet to get. I'm going to be using a trusted tattoo artist that's tattooed family and friends up in NY.

Chat Noir is going to grace my shoulder. He's always turned up since I met my husband, we're always noticing him showing up in silly places and he makes me smile.

My friend Liz also came up for the weekend so we could have some much needed girl time. I also got to run the Color In Motion 5K up in Hartford this weekend. That was really awesome! Although, I was a little bothered that it wasn't timed. It was really cool to run with my friends from the gym that I go to here.

I had to run home and really scrub because that color really stuck. I still have blue armpits. It looks like I put a smurf in a head lock. I had my final interview at Sephora that afternoon as well, thankfully I wore long sleeves so they couldn't see my blue. 

This week I'm up to 6 miles of running fun. My first 6 miler was a bit painful due to the really hot weather and poor route judgement. Another happy thing is that I started doing Drill Fit classes with the new trainer Shawna. She is really awesome about pushing us outside of our comfort zones while making sure that we stay safe. Last night's class was all about squats so my booty is totally sore. Tonight is my interval training. I'm essentially doing 6 days a week of workouts, and it feels pretty awesome.

What are your summer plans?

-Lindsey

Half Training Update :)

Helloooo! I've been away for a bit due to the craziness that has been my life lately. I've been getting the house cleaned up and we've been doing yardwork. I had job interviews this week at Sephora (only my favorite store in the world). Also just normal day to day busy stuff.
I am now on week 4 of training, aka my 5 mile week. I cannot lie, I was a bit intimidated this Saturday leading up to the first run. I almost psyched myself out, just the distance seemed far, but I powered through. Today I did my second 5 miler and it felt great! I got to mile 4 and found myself thinking "That's it?". Of course, this was after I hit a crazy hill at mile 3, by crazy I mean feeling like you're walking up a 90 degree angle.
I have found my peace with running, and it feels great. It's like an hour long meditation with me, my music, and the road. Speaking of music, do you have any good recommendations for running songs? I cannot run without my music, I tried and I overthink everything.
Here are the things I currently love about running:
-Being outdoors
-Getting my Vitamin D
-Jamming out to my favorite songs
-The runner's high I get after I'm done
-icing my shins post run
-My super awesome workout wardrobe

What do you love most about running/your current workout routine?

Half Marathon Training Starts...NOW!

I dived into half marathon training this week, and I have to say that I'm pretty excited. That amazing loving husband 'o' mine got me the training gear I'd been lusting after for Mother's Day.

My new Soleus GPS watch and my FitBit Zip

I LOVE my new gadgets, they do exactly what I need them to without a huge fuss. Hubs did his research when it came to the GPS watch, I compared it to my NikePlus Running app and the Nike app was off by .30 mi on distance. Whoa. The FitBit is like a cute pedometer that tracks my active and not so active movements, it also syncs up to an app on my iphone and I can plug in caloric intakes based on my goals.

Yeah, my watch is motivational and I enjoy it.

I named my FitBit Marshmallow, she has a striking resemblance to a tamogotchi.

Let's get into what my training schedule looks like for the next few months until race day. (September 14th! Aka Amanda's Birthday). OH! Bonus, my friend Amanda and her husband Sean are going to join us for this awesome half marathon. Here is the training schedule for this week:

Saturday- 2 miles (23:47)

Sunday-Rest Day

Monday-2 miles (22:49)

Tuesday- 1.5 mile interval training (16:00)

Wednesday-2 mile Hill Training (tomorrow)

Thursday-Gym Night-Dawn's Class

Friday-2 miles

Saturday-3 miles

Basically, I will be bumping my mileage up one mile per week. I will be running 5 out of 7 days of the week. I'm making it a point to not push myself too crazy to avoid injury, I'm also icing sore muscles in the evening. At some point soon I'm going to be buying a foam roller too. 

I haven't decided whether or not I'll be taking any supplement type things prior to or after runs. Once I get into my longer runs I will definitely be partaking in protein shakes. I also plan on doing some kind of GU gel for energy in the midst of the longer runs to get my body accustomed. 

What are your tried and true running tips? What are your goals?

-Lindsey

Unapologetically Me! (Or, things I love in April)

Lately I have gotten right back into the groove that is the Lindsey groove. I feel like myself: happy, mostly healthy, and rocking a good sense of humor. Taking things too seriously can really be a drag on my disposition. One of the greatest things that takes me out of a funk is interacting with some of my favorite people. My sister and I always text each other silly pictures for a good laugh. So I sent this:

I pretty much don't give half a doo doo what you think of how I look here. The sole purpose of this photo was to make my sister laugh, and it worked. This is why I love these text conversations, because we don't have to be anything special or beautiful, just us.

I also got to have a fun impromptu phone call with my buddy JC aka Sweet Love and Ginger. We talked about awkward Exes and how much we love(hate) running. It was so carefree and fun, and I love that there's no longer this constant pressure to have daily/weekly/what have you phone calls. We just picked up and talked. 

Neon Fresh has become one of my absolute favorite blogs to read. Roo does these posts every Friday called "This is How I feel" where she includes GIFS with explanations that are super relatable for the 20 something females out there. She knows my love of Target, so we are connected on that level.

BOOKS! I have been reading nonstop these days between taking care of Evie and working on applying for jobs. I read like crazy, to the point where my mom would not purchase books because I "finished them too quickly" (tell me where that reading etiquette is a thing). Now my husband supports my heavy(expensive) reading habit, because he too has that habit. 

(Do yourself a favor and read The Passage, and then read The Twelve. So amazing, I devoured these quickly).

I am also a huge fan of the friends I've made at my gym. How cool is it that we've become a crew of friends from all different walks of life and age groups. We bond on our love(mabye a little  bit of disdain) for working out. I love how we all just go with the flow and no one takes themselves too seriously.

How cool are our fabulous St.Patty's 5K get ups? L<3ve :)

Finally I am comfortable in my own skin again, and it feels great. :)

Go,Go,Go!!!

Things have seriously picked up for me since the last half of March began. I've been working on stuff for the paint party business that I work for. The parties that I have booked are going to be SO much fun. The first one for this month will be at a speakeasy themed wine bar. I'm excited to work and to check out the wine bar (love me some wine). The next party after that is up in NY for my friend Amanda and her family. I'm not necessarily doing this one to make money as much as I get to see my friend and hang out at a really beautiful (haunted) Victorian Inn.
This past Saturday I had the pleasure of working my very first vendor/craft fair. It was a great event that allowed me to network with a number of people and I was asked to book tables at two other fairs. I'm very excited for the one I'm doing in May since it is a Military Appreciation themed fair! Talk about near and dear to my heart. I met a bunch of other really awesome people selling their goods, and it was just plain fun to chat and make friends.
I was honestly worried that this wouldn't be the right job for me, there is no guarantee on how much work you will get or money you will make. Now that things are finally picking up I see that this is a perfect job for me, because of the schedule I can keep and the great people I am meeting.
Other than my work stuff I'm looking to start working on more of my own artwork to sell too. Spring is looking pretty awesome right now :)
-Lindsey

I'm an anxious person.

Here is something that I rarely admit openly, however, if you know me you can probably figure it out. I deal with anxiety issues. It's not nearly as bad as it used to be (scared to ask people where their bathrooms are, nervous to order a pizza). I still get anxious about relationships with others the most. There is this great blog article that uses illustrations to explain what it's like in my shoes.
Here's an Easy Way to Understand Anxiety
I think that being a Navy wife has been a good exercise in trying to work through my anxiety, but I still can't help but feel it. Things that may seem simple to someone without anxiety are a huge deal to me.

New Girl in Half Training!

I've been bitten by the running bug, oh yes, it's true. My original bite happened last year in Hawaii and lead to me completing the 8 mile Great Aloha Run.

It was so exhilarating to see the finish after my longest run to date.

I spent so much time getting psyched up for countless 5K and 10K races, because it had honestly become one of my favorite social activities. Every time I completed a race I felt a beautiful sense of accomplishment. I would think "I just did this, what can I do next?" 

How fantastic is it that we can feel accomplished together? There must be a saying about the "couple that runs together"...

Well now I've been bitten by an even bigger running bug, the half marathon bug. It all came about after I decided to sign up for a trio of 5Ks in March. Husband said "why not? we get a cool clover medal!"

Ok, I give him credit, that is pretty darn cool.

Last night he finally convinced me to run my first half marathon. I will be running the Surftown half in Westerly, RI in September. How can you beat beautiful beach views and then free admission to the Fall Festival? This is also the week before my vow renewal, so extra cool that I will have finished my first half just before. So I've decided I'm all in! Time to get my base runs in and begin training. 

Yay for new running shoes!

What is your favorite part about training for a big run? Least favorite? 

Real Talk: Job Hunting and Resume Writing

Do you ever feel like you're a perpetual teenager and you still look up to parents/older relatives as adults? I feel that way sometimes, and then I remind myself "Hey, you're a mom and wife. You take care of adult business on the daily, you've earned this title".

I think one of the biggest things that has held me back from owning it is my lack of career. It's been almost a year since I graduated and I have yet to step into a job in my field. This is something I feel like I always come back to in my blog writing. I just have this certain feeling of inadequacy because I have yet to have a real full time job. 

Last night, my friend Amanda and I got to chatting over wine and the conversation veered toward my career based insecurities. I know the biggest thing that's been holding me back is my lack of resume and cover letter writing skills. I had a few people offer me help post graduation in this area, and I've kind of just been too chicken to do so. I explained to Amanda that I was embarrassed by my resume, to put it simply. She reassured me that no one has a fantastic resume to start but we could work it out together. Her empathy toward my situation really made me feel so much better!

So now, one of my main goals is to have a job by year end. I think that's realistic based on what Amanda and other friends have said about the job hunt. I really thought it was my level of inexperience and just my junk resume. I now know that at least one of those things is untrue.

What is the best advice you've been given about job hunting?

Princess Evie Bear: Fun, Crafts, and Potty Training

In less than 2 months Evie will be 3 years old, I can hardly believe it. She has become such an individual within the last year. Her favorite color is pink and she loves a good princess dress.

Her favorite song is "Roar" by Katy Perry because she loves the part where it goes "roar-or-or-orrrr!"
Being the mommy to such a personality filled little girl has it's ups and downs. The ups as of recently have been being able to enjoy certain holidays and activities with E.

We had crazy amounts of fun putting sprinkles all over cupcakes for Daddy. She really focuses when she's doing something creative, and that makes me so happy.

Now we're finally battling the potty! I've been blogging about hoping that she would start, and she did, but it has been a bumpy start. We tried to put her in big girl underwear and she just peed in them and didn't care. Her pullups are a different story, because she has to throw them away when she soils them, and you can tell it bugs her. 

She started out really well as you can tell from her potty chart.

Now we're just dealing with the defiant toddler attitude. It makes me wonder if she's really ready, but it seems kind of silly to give up now. 

Regardless of that, I'm still enjoying getting to know this awesome little person. :)

-Lindsey

Getting my sh@# together: Happiness Project Update

The Happiness Project has been a pretty successful thing for me. I've made it a point to keep the guidelines pretty loose, it seems to make little sense to stress over something that's supposed to do the opposite.
My healthy lifestyle changes have really set a positive vibe to my days. I've made it a point to workout every other day for the  last couple of weeks. I've also kicked my really bad soda habit, I've become a junky for lemon water. As my friend Jen says "Well, you'll never get scurvy!" :)
In all of these efforts I've managed to up my energy levels and lose 3 lbs! I know, it doesn't sound like a lot, but it is a healthy weight loss for a two week period of time.

Blogilates has become a staple in my day to day routine. All I've needed for these workouts was a yoga mat, a set of hand weights, and a bottle of water. The daily workout calendar sets you up with FREE workout videos that add up to about an hour of pilates. They are really awesome strength type workouts. I always feel amazing when I've finished.

I'm also making strides in my career related stuff. I've gotten back into my element with art and I'm going to start teaching painting parties with Art In Disguise next month.

I've also decided to start work on a new series of art. Thanks to Mommaste's Monday Mantra for reminding me that I can make this happen. 

What types of things keep you motivated? Still feeling like you're living the new year to it's fullest advantage?

-Lindsey

Evie's Craft Week #1

This is our first week of doing a regular craft with Evie. Since her daddy is away and will be returning right before Valentine's day we decided on a gift for him. We got on Pinterest and found lots of fun ways to use finger paints to make V-day themed gifts.

First Evie got to do some free painting. She loves talking about different colors. After she painted a little bit she asked me to wipe her hands. Regardless of how messy she gets Evie is always asking to have her hands wiped off.

This told me the next thing that we planned to do would be pretty entertaining. I covered her hands and feet in red paint. Evie went into fits of giggles over her crazy mama painting her toes and fingers.

Once she was finished she was so ready to get cleaned up!

Which is why we chose to do this activity right before bubble bath time!

This was the finished product! A sweet Valentine to give to Daddy. :)

Check back next week to see what kind of fun craft Evie and I decide to do together. We're planning to try to do one every Sunday! 

-Lindsey and Evie

Wheat Bread 101 or How I Wasted Tons of Active Yeast and Wheat Flour

I spent no less than 3 days trying to bake the perfect loaf of wheat bread this week. I'm talking fluffy sandwich wheat, not dense brick loaf. I made four attempts before deciding that my last loaf was edible and not too offensive.
Here are the things I learned about baking wheat bread:
1.How to use yeast-Um, so this wasn't brand new to me, but I definitely used YouTube to look up a video on how to proof yeast.

Very informative, and I managed to not murder more than one packet of yeast.

2.No one uses just wheat flour in their bread-This is where the density of the bread can really go one way or the other. I thought I was being super healthy and awesome only using wheat flour. Yeah, if you want a heavy old doorstop that totally works.

The reason that this doesn't work out so well is that the bread needs the gluten found in the regular white flour to get that rise and fluff. Before you go all gung ho gluten free speech on me, don't. I don't have any gluten sensitivities and I don't feel the need to exclude it from my diet. That's why my new best friend is this stuff.

Vital wheat gluten is there to help give the bread more of the sandwich soft bread texture. It definitely helped with the density issue.

3.My awesome husband told me that a good bread dough should be sticky. Meaning, if it's dry and flaky like my batch #3 then it's back to the drawing board. 

While I did deem loaf #4 acceptable I'm not confident in it enough to share a recipe, but I'm gonna work on it! In my next attempt I'm going to substitute one cup of the wheat flour for a different type of flour. Do you have any suggestions for a different type? The recipe suggested potato flour but that is not sold in my regular grocery store.

Let me know any bread baking tips you have!

-Lindsey

My Happiness Project

I've been making it a point to vary what I've been reading. On one of my regular trips to Target I was attracted by this book.

With all of the change and everything going on recently it seemed like a good read. The author goes through a 12 month process where she 1 or 2 goals each month, and she rates herself everyday for the month. She is currently continuing her happiness project, and you can read her blog here. While I appreciated the concept I think she got a little too wrapped up where she only focused on herself. 

One of the things that she did was create her list of commandments to help promote happiness.

I decided that I would work on this myself, without becoming so in depth that it rules my day to day. The first thing is to create a list of commandments for myself.

1. Enjoy The Simple.

This is about finding happiness and joy in the small things. Enjoy an exceptional cup of tea. Admire the peaceful snow storms. Wear a funky scarf and tie it in a new way.

2.Step away from social networks. 

I've already begun towork on this, the Facebook App has been deleted from my phone. While I plan to regularly check my facebook, I'm not going to depend on it for entertainment or communication. Unfortunately I cannot completely get rid of it, the painting business that I'm working with depends upon facebook for advertising, communication, etc.

3.Play with Evie

I spend a lot of time watching movies and reading with Evie, but I should take some time to play with her. I want to come up with at least one creative activity per week to do together. To hold myself accountable I'm going to post about it here! :)

4.Exercise More

No more excuses about John's schedule. I'm going to squeeze in workouts whether I can make it to the gym or not (being out of town is the only exception in the colder months, because I can at least run when it's warmer). Since I started working out again my whole attitude and energy level have both changed.

5.Eat more veggies

John and I have decided to make 1-2 veggie centric meals per week. This is mainly for health reasons, we tend to eat some pretty heavy meals because we both really love experimenting. We need to get more green goodness in there! 

6.Remind yourself that being a SAHM is a job.

Since moving to CT I've been kind of obsessing over finding a job. Taking care of Evie is important, being a stay at home mom is a lot of work. A Forbes Article detailed why stay at home moms should make about $115,000 per year (just imagine how much a friend of mine that has 4 children under the age of 3 would make!!). This blog Matt Walsh wrote about his wife helped to remind me that  I am doing important work. Recently, I had someone close to me call what I did into question, telling me that I don't do anything and that I'm worthless (clearly out of anger). That blog article reminded me that I am worth a lot to my daughter and husband.

7.Go Natural

This covers a lot of things. First off, I want to go more natural with the types of food we're eating. This week I'm going to begin making our wheat bread. Small changes make for an easy transition. I also want to use more natural hair care, skin care, and beauty products.

8.Learn

I want to learn more about a number of topics. I want to learn how to have my own garden. I want to learn how to do different activities. Trying new things is fun!

9.Let it Roll Off

Let the unnecessary drama go. If it doesn't directly involve me, I'm gonna ignore it. Try not to control every situation, let others handle it.

10.Have more conversations with my husband while he makes dinner

I used to hate standing around our kitchen in Hawaii while my husband cooked. My back would hurt and I would get restless. We now have this wonderful breakfast bar where I can sit and talk to him while he cooks. 

Those are the 10 things I'm going to continually work on for 2014. It's ok if I falter in some areas at times, but I want to be better overall when 2015 comes along. Especially if we're planning on adding another member to our family. What would your 10 commandments be?

-Lindsey

I Crave Routine

If you guys follow you know that I have had a whirlwind couple of months (Honestly, most people have, the holidays do that). I was giving myself headaches over trying to plan out my days because new things that needed to be done kept cropping up.
I've been dying just to be able to have a regular workout schedule, regular activities for Evie, and regular dinners for the whole family. Alas, that has been a bit of a tall order for us lately. All the family visits and holiday junk really got in the way.
Now that we're back in CT with no road trips planned in the too near future I'm working out my schedule. Hallelujah!
I've finally forced myself to get around to hiring a babysitter. This is a big thing since I can't really depend on John's schedule to stay the same. He'll get out of work early, he'll get out on time, he'll get out late, or he'll be off in a European country randomly. (Oh hey Norway, he'll be there soon!) I NEED my workouts, like I need them to function. The first time I worked out a couple weeks ago I slept amazingly for the first time and I started feeling human! Whoa!

Can we talk about guest beds? Oh my gosh, do I ever dislike sleeping in a bed that's not my own. My parents guest bed is as comfortable as a medieval torture device.

(Is it a Sealy???)

I'm so happy to be home, and I love my not overly exciting routine. Excuse me while I go numb my brain with The Sims until my workout class. :)

Vow Renewal Planning Update

Wedding planning is not for procrastinators or people who do not work well under pressure.
Thankfully for me, my planning process has been pretty stress free thus far. I've managed to nail down my venue, photographer, makeup artist, and hair stylist. Husband and I also have a cake tasting scheduled in a couple weeks! In the same day we are hoping to speak with a restaurant about catering our little shindig.
I'm pretty happy that I've had a lot of friends and family to help recommend vendors. I honestly would not know where to begin. I'm also extremely thankful that one of my close friends is a travel agent and she's helping to find details on our Caribbean Cruise honeymoon.
Now the fun of it, I've decided to be a crazy person and create my own centerpieces, footwear, and favors. I'm making flowers in the interest of saving money on real ones (except for my bouquet). I will bedazzling up some shoes with Swarovski crystals, because let's be honest, these feet don't agree with high heels. Evie will also have a matching pair of sneakers to sport down the aisle. I'm also planning little surprise bursts of color, because if you know me you know that I can't just wear white.
Last night I joined a fitness club to start "shedding for the wedding". Also, I really just need to improve my overall quality of life and de-stress. I refuse to be a bridezilla at my vow renewal! :)

Terrible Two's

I need to take a deep cleansing breath. This whole raising a toddler thing is no joke. Every single task has become a fight that leads to a temper tantrum. Putting on clothes because she constantly wants to wear her Cinderella night gown. Putting on shoes because she constantly wants to wear her tacky plastic Minnie Mouse heels.

(F you Minnie Mouse shoes!)

I'm sorry kid, but this is not appropriate footwear for 12 degree New England winter weather. From that point it was actually getting her in the car seat. Have you ever tried to put a toddler into their car seat. It is easily one of the most frustrating tasks.

Evie would be "The Rod" but combined with excessive crying, because getting in a car seat is equal to Chinese water torture around here. feh! 

On to the main point of my post. The other moms who say "It only gets worse when they turn 3" (often said with a douchey grin). To those moms I say, shut the heck up! When our children are 2.5 or older and you're stealing the light at the end of our tunnel you're just a giant troll in lipstick and yoga pants.

This is what you look like. Jerk.

So do us moms of two year olds a favor. Keep your troll-y trap shut and let us live in our naive land of "it get's better after 2".