Things I love!!

Being a woman we have all of these "things" that make us who we are. All these places we visit. Being a Mother a Wife and a Woman, I am always trying new things, testing new recipes, reading reviews. I love when I find things that "work". Trust me not everything "works" for everyone.

Heres a few things/places that I love.

I LOVEEEEEE yummy recipes and trying new recipes. I love cooking.

Im in love with Pinterest at the moment. It makes me feel capable. Its my new obsession.

I LOVE Etsy. Im always looking for unique gift ideas or projects. I love all things homemade.

My home away from home Fitness Rehab/SASS fitness. This is where I go to get back in touch with me. This place allows me to be Jenny. Not Mommy, not Wifey, not sister or daughter. Just Jenny. Here there are endless possibilities. Here I push myself harder then I have ever pushed myself before.

The baseball field. It could be anywhere. Last weekend it was in Elk Grove. This weekend its at Raley Field. Baseball is a huge part of our lives. We have what we call a baseball family. When we are at Coles games there are so many things going on that we enjoy. We watch him play and this is one of the most exciting things as a parent. We socialize with our baseball family. These are our friends and we love them. We get to "cheat" and he yummy food. It just goes with the program ya know. Our girls get to play, Brooklyn with all the other Mommies and Taylor with her friends and on the playgrounds. It feels our cup. Its our life.

Fall. I love this time of year. The smells the chill in the air the beautiful colors the yummy food. I love it all. Its when I know the Holidays are around the corner. The Holidays for me is a time for our families to enjoy eachothers company. To be together. I love it! Our middle child has such excitement for the holidays. Every part of the Holidays, the decorating, the cooking, the gathering EVERYTHING, picturing the sparkle in her eyes motivates me during the Holidays. I love that kid.

What are some things that you love?

Reminder

Some days I just need a reminder....

Fall Cravings

All my life I have had big legs. When I was a little girl I noticed at a young age my legs were different. When I sat down my thighs were wider and my calves well you get the picture. It wasn't until I was in Highschool did I come to appreciate my legs and their uniqueness. It wasn't until then did I thank my parents for the gene that they handed down to me. These legs definitely come with their own "issues". Some styles just don't work for me, no matter how hard I try. Skinny jeans, ya right. Tall Boots, HA!

The air is starting to cool. The leaves are changing. The last few days the sky has been falling. (Rain) Usually this time of year I am faced with my dilemma. I want boots. I want cute riding boots. I want to wear boots over my jeans. I am determined to make this happen. I stopped trying on boots because I knew I wasn't getting the darn things over my calf.

My girlfriend at work had on a cute pair of riding boots. She called them her biker boots. They were cute none the less. I was telling her about my leg boot issue. So she offered her boot to me to try on. She calls herself a big girl and told me she has big girl calves and a big foot and these boots clearly would fit over mine. So this has sort of been a joke for me. I have fun with it. I'm long over the insecurity. So I shuck off my shoes and attempt to stuff my foot and leg in her big girl boot. sigh. Her size 10 boot wouldn't accommodate my size 8 issue.

I love how wide calves are advertised as 14". Really!! I'm pretty sure I'm pushing 18". and if I had something around here I would measure. but for now I don't and I will just wish for some of these fall glories.

I know this has NOTHING to do with my leg boot issue. BUT I'm craving this color right now. Should I do it? 

Through the eyes of babes

We made a quick trip to Target to grab a few things.

Taylor likes to dig through my purse while we are shopping, usually to find gum or lipgloss. This time she found the camera and had herself a little photo shoot....lets see what she is hungry for.

 Daddy looks serious

The End.

EPIC

A few weeks ago I met with Julianne with EPIC photography and she took pictures of the kids. The focus was mostly on Brooklyn since this was her first photo shoot but I wanted to make sure to get all 3 of them.

I will mention Taylor decided she didnt really want to have much to do with it that morning so she didnt have any individual pictures. Next time I guess. Im thinking of doing a session for just her, something fun.

The pictures turned out fantastic!

I should probably mention EPIC photography was giving away a session on FB so I had to try. I ended up losing by a few votes, this crazy chick I was competing with pulled some peeps out of the bag at the last minute, insane. It was probably one of the most stressful fun times I have ever had in a contest and Im sure the other people involved would agree. So being the sweetheart that she is, Julieanne decided to give me the same package as the winner because we both worked so hard. How is that for customer service.

Sorry for the picture overload. These are some of my fav's.



Its in the air

I always know when Autumn has arrived. Its in my biological clock. I get this urge to be in the kitchen. During the fall and winter months you can usually find me there on Sunday. Cooking up something, usually a new recipe for my family.

It has started. Let me tell you though, Dieting and cooking/baking/trying new recipes isn't all that fun. You have to get creative or just find that inner will power. Who wants to cook up all that yummy goodness and not eat it? NOT me.

Yesterday I tried a new White Bean Chili recipe. It would be the healthy version with turkey. It was great! My family loved it. I cant have chili without cornbread. Cornbread is one of those things that is super easy to make from scratch and way better than any boxed version.

Today I am fighting the urge to run home and make these.....

 homemade graham crackers. I NEVER even thought about making those. I'm sure they just melt in your mouth. You can bet by the end of the week I will have whipped up a batch. You cant make those without making these to go with them...

Marshmallows. Never thought to make those either!! I'm so excited. I might have to have a little cup of hot cocoa to go with if the weather permits. I might be jumping ahead of myself there though. Maybe I will just turn my air conditioner on super freezing. Jump into some sweats. Light some candles and get to baking.

Anyone have any other recipes I need to try? 

clutter

My head is spinning with all these posting ideas. Im not home to tell a story with pictures. I will have to make do. Im going to go work for a few and maybe come back. Toodles

Stop with the excuses

I am a person that loves fitness, enjoys working out, likes to eat healthy and LOVES to be in shape. When you strip away all my layers this is what you will find. This is who I am. Where and at what point did I lose sight of that. When did I lose control? Why did I let myself go? 

People say that you lose yourself when you become a Mother and sometimes when you become a wife. I truly believe that. Its not intentional. It just sort of happens and then one morning you wake up and don't recognize the body you are in and the person you have transformed into. Then you carry on sometimes with a chip on your shoulder a little jealous bug in your ear. Why did I let this happen? Who am I? Who robbed me of all my clothes and left me with this hunger for rich foods and sweet desserts. 

Once you stop blaming everyone and everything else. Once you STOP with the excuses and take responsibility for the path that led you here, you can take control and start making some changes. 

This is and was me. With the extra pounds I put on, I hid under layers and layers of excuses. I tried to protect myself from taking responsibility. Fail. I lost sight of what was important to me. I stopped caring about myself and lost myself in caring for my family. Its easy to do. I did it. 

Well Im not doing it anymore. Im making changes. Im taking responsibility and I have stopped making excuses. 

I walked into that delivery room weighing in at 206 pounds. THAT is unheard of. I delivered a 8 lb. 9oz baby girl that has taken my breath away. Within the first month I was down 24 pounds. It was awesome and I felt great. Then I noticed clothes were getting smaller and I was feeling lazier. Then I saw a picture of myself and didn't recognize the face staring back at me. Who was this chubby cheek double chin girl. From behind I didn't look like myself. I resembled a linebacker. Yes I did. SO I did the dreaded task of stepping on the scale and VERY QUICKLY jumped off like the damn thing burned my feet. REALLY??!!!! That scale is broken THERE IS NO WAY I gained 12 pounds back. BUT I did. It was me all me. 

A friend referenced her and myself as "big" girls. Nothing against ANYONE else but I was not going to be in the Big girl category and be ok with it. I am not naturally a big girl. 

So I started a bootcamp. Two times a week. I couldn't run the 4 laps without stopping. I made excuses and I didn't change my diet. Nothing happened. I was taking baby steps. 

In order for me to get the results I wanted and desperately needed I couldn't take baby steps. I had to leap off of this friggin ride and jump head first no looking back. This is when I stumbled across Fitness Rehab/SASS fitness. I walked in on my first day with no expectations and no clue what to expect. I saw my new "Trainer" in her army pants that clung to every beautiful curve and new I was in for it. I left there with a membership for my husband (If I was gonna get my a$$ kicked on a daily basis he was going to as well) I could barely walk for the next week. For the first month I saw small victories. So small that only if you were paying attention would you notice. The gym is different then any run of the mill gym. You dont just show up whenever you want and get your workout on. Its structured. For me, that works. This is what I need. The classes are offered throughout the day for the early morning risers to the after work draggers. You can get your butt kicked at bootcamp flipping tires, holding planks with Debbie in Core, spinning away your worries, heightened yoga (not to be confused with traditional yoga, heightened yoga is NOT for sissies), braving the monkey bars, swinging kettle balls. Well you get the picture. 

Sandra cute little Sandra, means business. You come to her with NO excuses and only when you are serious about changing your life. She is my breath of fresh air. She has given me hope and for the first time in a very long time, I notice the difference. My body is changing and Im starting to see a glimpse of  "ME". 

Caution

You have been warned.

If you are an animal owner this tool is a must. If you are like me and get anxiety about animal hair, this tool is a must.

If I was smart I would have gotten the shed less breeds. BUT I never claimed to be smart or just didn't prefer that breed whichever. Or I somehow didn't have a say about the dog it just ended up in our backyard one night while I was 9 months pregnant and out shopping at the mall. Then he just sort of grew on me. Except for his uncontrollable scavenging trait. That's almost got him a swift kick out the door. Like last night when he finished the birthday cake from Freeport Bakery. Or the many many times he gobbled down a yummy just made sandwich. Or a subway sandwich that I couldn't finish but was waiting until later. Or a dozen crispy black cookies that didn't get pulled out of the oven in time and went straight to the trash. Yes he eats out of the trash. That's why i call him a scavenger. He has no preference at all, garbage food, food left in the garage, food on the table, food on the counter, food in the kids hands (preferably Taylor), food on the floor (If he wasn't named when we got him I would have named him Kirby, after my vacuum), unmentionables out of the cat box ( blah blah uggh ughh I cant even let that enter my mind, good thing we got rid of the cat box once that happened. she is now trained to go outdoors, which I have yet to see anything, blah blugghhh uguuughg GROSS), AND hes a carpet licker. Weird friggin carpet licking soap bar eating dog.  He chews on soap bars. The carpet licking Im pretty sure is my baby spit up spot cleaner. Im just saying. Who cant smell spit up from a mile away, or even after its been cleaned. darn dog.

I would like to mention. We DO NOT feed him people food. Not at all, not in his bowl not out of our hands, not on the floor not off of our table. The kids are not supposed to either. Maybe we should start and that will stop his starving scavenging dog behavior. I bet not he will just have totally bad habits. Then he would be a starving scavenging carpet licking begger. sigh. Theres no hope.

BUT I keep him because, he doesnt dig, he doesnt chew on anything but his bones. Not my shoes not any underwear (come on we ALL know about those dogs) nothing, he doesnt run away and hes pretty good mannered. Hes got a good foundation but still a work in progress. AND hes not even two years old and a chocolate lab. We all know how labs are. I think all in all we got lucky with this friggin dog. Dont tell my husband that. Riley is his Dog. Even though he follows me around like hes my shadow, sleeps on my side of the bed when I get up and wakes ME up when he has to pee. Ofcourse he does.

anyway. Back to the point of this post. If your a freak like I am about animal hair, I cant stand it. Cant stand it. YOU MUST get a FURminator. Splurge, pick one up. Its a must. Just look at the pictures below. Or dont because personally it makes my nose itch. and I dont even have allergies.

WOW!!! Let me mention this dog gets baths regularly. This picture DOES NOT do this hair pile justice. It was huge. HUGE huge. GROSS!! Like 2-3 feet wide and 1 foot high. No joke. This tool means business. Go get one.

The end.

When the weather gets warm. When the kids get crazy. Or on any given day.

You might find us here.

Isnt my husband hot?

Our nephew Jace, braving the tube and learning the board.

Theres something about the water. It clears your head and calms your nerves.

Even the dog likes the boat.

My Girl

You need me right now. But you need Daddy too. The last 7 months have been rough for you. You have handled it like a champ like I knew you would. You went from being the baby our baby to a big sister, a big girl, the middle child. Not the baby anymore. It was like overnight you were supposed to grow up. I have never been so proud of you and never been so sad. When I was in the hospital having Brooklyn my heart ached for you. I wanted to be with you, I missed you losing your second tooth and it made me sad. I cried.

I cried because your my girl. You are my biggest challenge. You know I can always do better, you make me do better. You challenge me. We learned this whole Mommy daughter thing together. Some days we are still trying to figure it out. I am so proud of you. I know right now you need me. Brooklyn came into our lives and turned your whole world around. You love her more than anything and do such a good job helping me with her. I appreciate that.

I promise to give you more of me. Like your late night dates with Daddy, just the two of you while the rest of the house is fast asleep. You and Daddy are buds. Secretly, I know he is your favorite. Thats ok though, because I know you need me. That makes it all ok.

HOLY SHMOLLY!!!

I have some pictures! HOT DIGGITY DOG! How can you not be excited to look at all this preciousness.

 This one cracks me up.

She didnt get to eat the candy bar but I had to take a picture and send it to Daddy because he was a bad boy and bought Mommy one of these bad boys right in the heat of my diet. NOT NICE!! Hersheys with almonds,,,,,,,my weakness when it comes to candy bars. 

Musings

I  CANNOT believe how behind I am. I know this gets old. It seems like I say the same thing with every new post. You know what, I just havent felt like blogging. I have been to busy with life, yet I still feel behind on life, ya know. Does that make sense?
I cant tell you how many times I have sat here attempting to blog and gone blank. Nothing nada. AND I cant tell you how many days the thought never crossed my mind. Make sense?

Well, today I decided that I missed it. I decided that I didnt want to forget the little things or the little moments. Because we ALL know if we dont put them down it doesnt matter how good we are, we forget. The little things.

So now, where to start?? From where I left off? or from right now? How about from now.

Not to mention my camera is on the boat in some warehouse. Hmmm that cant be good. ESPECIALLY with these little Munchkins and all these memories and stuff I should be capturing. I could make a phone call and tell them Im coming to get my camera and IPOD. That those boys left on the boat. Darn boys. Thats what I should do. My whole point in bringing up the camera was because all my pictures are on there from the last couple months. I mean a picture is worth a thousand words right? RIGHT? Without the picture Im pretty sure I cant come up with a thousand words, ok now im rambling.
Peace! lol

Heavy heart

Life has been hard. The kind of hard that finds you pondering your thoughts or daydreaming all day long. I have been left with a sort of shocking numbness. This life of ours its hard. I find myself counting my blessings. I have an awesome husband that makes me a better person. He works at our marriage and I am grateful for that. I have 3 beautiful well behaved children. I have a roof over our head, food on the table and transportation to get us where we need to go. I have family that loves me and friends that stand beside me. I am blessed. Both my parents are alive and I still have living Grandparents! I truly am blessed.

This past year has come with allot of heartache. Allot of goodbyes some expected even if we weren't ready and some that surprised us.

This life of ours, it can be rough. I refuse to be molded by circumstance, I will forever stand my ground in the most vicious of storms. Each storm that I encounter will only make me stronger. Will only teach me a knew lesson. Each storm will leave me a better person, a better Mommy, wife, sister, daughter, granddaughter and friend.

I know there is one thing in life I will never understand and I will never accept. I just don't have it in me.

CANCER effing sucks!!

It started with my sweet Grandpa....

I know he is in a better place. I remind myself that everyday. It doesn't stop me from missing him, it doesn't make the sadness disappear. The hardest part is watching my sweet Grandma suffer. She is lonely and a little lost. Not to mention she has had probably the worst year of her life. Aside from the total emptiness she feels by his absence things have just been difficult for her. First her lawn mower broke. Which sounds petty but when you are 76 years old and need to mow 2.5 acres it could be a little difficult having to push that darn thing around! THEN her air conditioner broke. When its 105 out its hard to just put it to the side. When they want like $8000 because they cant fix the old one it needs to be replaced. It might give you a little headache. Its just been one thing after another.

My sweet sweet Grandma. Then during this last big storm, THIS happened.......

Wouldn't you know the part of the house it landed on was her bedroom and wouldn't you know the damage was done to her closet that had all of my Grandpas clothes in it. A task she wasn't yet ready to tackle but forced to or her decisions would  be made for her. Barely missed the darn brand new air conditioner. THANK GOODNESS! She had to fly to Portland last week because her Sissy passed away. I don't care who you are but no one she ever have to bury to people so dear to them within a year. That is just too much.

Then in January, on my sisters birthday mind you. This Dear woman passed away. She lived an awesome 91 years. The above picture was taken at Easter last year. Isn't she a Beauty. She sure knew how to make us laugh. Even in her last few weeks, she was still as funny as ever. She was ok with dying and she let us know. She said her goodbyes and held on as long as she could. She touched each and everyone of us up until her last breath. I will cherish every moment I spent with her, my husband was very lucky to have such a special person to call his Grandmother. One of the last conversations I had with her she told me, "Child I have never done this before, this is a Whole new ball game for me, I have never died before" She just about knocked my socks off. She was a true Southern woman, through and through.

Some goodbyes are not as peaceful as others. Last week on April 13th one of my Best Friends moms passed away. This woman was like a second Mother to me. I practically lived with her during allot of my teenage years. She was such a genuine person and always made everyone feel so loved. Really Loved. She was diagnosed with lung cancer and colon cancer and was told it was inoperable. The mass was too close to her heart. Within 10 days it had spread to her heart and esophagus. She was told she had about a month to live. 3 days later she passed away. Everyone was in COMPLETE shock. Things like this really make you stop dead in your tracks. Literally stop. In 2008 she reconnected with her childhood sweetheart and remarried. She also met a sister she never knew she had. She was such a special person.

We love you Sofiea.

This is why life has been hard lately. So much heartache. Its everywhere.