Blog

link roundup / 3

Today I’m sharing some stuff I found around the internet. Enjoy!

I don’t have time to watch TV anymore, but I’m still addicted to Ashley’s bachelor/ette recaps.

If only I had time and money to complete all the online workshops I want to. This iPhone photography e-course would be perfect for me since my iPhone is currently my only camera.

How to make a peg loom. I still have the loom I made with spare wood and nails, but I really like this method and looks like it’d be easier to do, too!

I am dying over this DIY woven bench. We really need a couple benches in our house and all of the materials are so affordable. I really hope I can make this one happen.

I made these chocolate coconut energy bars last weekend with my hand-me-down blender and even though mine turned out kind of liquid before I refrigerated them (I think I over-processed the nuts) they were still really good!

This bedroom is one of my new favorites. I think we could do a lot of similar things with our bedroom. We already have the white walls and a similar dresser, and I’m working on the gallery wall.

Happy Memorial Day weekend!

May 23, 2014
why i want to blog more, not less

You may have noticed that for the past six weeks or so, I’ve been blogging every week day instead of my previous 2-3 times per week. I’ve always wanted to try a more frequent blogging schedule, and now that I have a little extra time in my days I thought I would give it a shot.

I’ve been second guessing my decision though. Every time I read a post about why someone is deciding to step back from blogging as often, or as personally, or at all, I think, “Should I be doing this? Am I wasting my time?” I also question whether or not I’ll be able to keep up with this; not that it matters to anyone if I don’t, but I’d like to be consistent.

So I’ve thought about it. And even though things might change and I might not be able to keep up with this, I’ve decided that I want to keep blogging more, not less. These are my reasons why:

1. Blogging is a constant creative outlet for me. I stay very busy, and I don’t have the right kind of dedicated time to work on most of the creative projects that I enjoy doing with my hands. But my life would be much poorer if I could only be creative every couple of weeks. Blogging is a creative process for me, and I am constantly composing posts in my head before I actually get to the writing part. So I find the whole thing very enriching in that way.

2. Blogging is an excellent form of memory keeping. This is so important to me. Even though I do Project Life and keep a small journal, they don’t capture everything. There are so many times that I’ve gone back to read old blog posts and it’s just fascinating to remember the things I wrote about.

3. My blogging friends are real friends. I know I could make online friends just as easily (or better) through Twitter and Instagram – and I have. But for me it all started with my blog because it offers a deeper insight than 140 characters allows. And personally, I still read the blogs of my friends even when I don’t have time to keep up with Twitter.

4. I just love blogging. I don’t know what it is about it exactly, but it’s so fun for me. I’ve thought about what life would be like if I gave it up, and that makes me sad. It’s a gut thing. So as long as it stays enjoyable and isn’t detracting from the important areas of my life, I’m going to keep doing it.

I’m NOT blogging more to grow my readership, make money, or eventually try to make a career of it. For now I really believe that blogging will (and should) always be a hobby for me. I enjoy being able to do a sponsored post here and there, but if I were to have to do it as a job it would instantly lose its appeal. I blog because I like it, and that’s it.

May 22, 2014
a little q & a

1. What has been your most favorite vacation to date?

Our honeymoon to Kauai was just amazing and a true vacation.

2. Do you prefer big city life, suburban life, or a life in the country?

I am most acquainted with suburban life, which I am a fan of in general because you have the conveniences of a city nearby but it’s more affordable, the schools are better (usually), and there is more space. I’ve never truly lived in the heart of a big city but I can imagine that it would have some perks like things being within walking distance and having more character. I also haven’t technically experienced country life, but I did go to college in a town of 3,000 people surrounded by farmland, and I really liked small town life. I guess I can adapt anywhere. :)

3. What is your favorite type/genre of food?

Italian food is so good but so rich! And Tex-Mex…mmm. I also love a good sandwich.

4. How would you typically dress yourself for a weekend night out?

We are not fancy, so probably something like skinny jeans, sandals, and a flowy top.

5. Do you like to wear accessories? If yes, what are your go-to accessories?

Not really. I wear stud earrings every day though, and I love delicate necklaces.

6. How do you typically fix your hair? (Blow dry and straighten/curl? Air dry? Wash and go?)

I wash it every few days at night and let it air dry. For work I just put it in a ponytail or bun. Otherwise I’ll just leave it down (I have very straight hair that doesn’t do well with styling so I just make sure to get a cut that flatters it without much work). Sometimes I’ll straighten it if there are weird kinks.

7. What make up do you wear on a daily basis? Do you have a preferred brand of cosmetics?

I wear mineral foundation, blush, and mascara. That’s it. I love Bare Minerals.

8. What is your preferred workout? (Gym? Outdoor running? Yoga? Group classes? None? Etc…?)

I’m still figuring out what is going to work for me on a long-term basis, but right now running feels good. I loooove in-person yoga classes but can’t afford them. I’m excited about the versatility of a gym though. Haven’t tried many group classes.

9. Where is your favorite place to shop online?

Amazon.

10. Do you enjoy entertaining guests in your home or would you prefer to be a guest and leave the hostessing to someone else?

I like having people over, but I’m not super confident in my hostessing skills yet so I usually prefer to be a guest. :)

11. What quality do you really value in your significant other?

There are too many awesome things about David to list here, but I want to mention that I really appreciate how smart, funny, and communicative he is. That means I am never bored with him around, and I always know what he’s feeling!

***

Thank you, Melissa, for tagging me! I tag: Kerri / Stephany / Sarah / Nora /Kara

Here are my questions:

1. What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?

2. What do you eat for breakfast?

3. What’s your go-to weeknight meal?

4. Do you do any kind of journaling or memory keeping?

5. How do you fix your coffee, or do you prefer tea (or neither)?

6. What’s the last good book you read?

7. If you had a day all to yourself with no schedule, how would you spend it?

8. What are three things on your life list?

9. When you really need to relax or de-stress, where do you go and what do you do?

10. What’s on your nightstand?

11. What’s the last thing you do before you go to sleep?

May 21, 2014
whole person health : physical
Continuing with my series on getting back to a state of whole-person health, I want to talk today about a huge chunk of that, which is physical. I’m going to start out by outlining my goals, and then discuss how I plan to address them. In the future I hope to give shorter updates of my progress.

Personally, my goals are:

1. To fit back into my pre-baby clothes and hopefully get back to my ideal weight (I’m about 10-15 pounds over right now).

2. To be in shape and feel strong. I would also love to see some muscle definition of which I currently have none.

3. To feel proud of the food that I’m putting in my body. I want it to be real and balanced but I don’t want to feel restricted.

4. To maintain healthy overall habits.

These goals are pretty broad, but I’ve broken the action steps down into three main categories.

Exercise

I know that weight loss doesn’t come primarily from exercise, but it’s the only way that I’m going to feel in shape and strong, plus it has lots of other benefits.
- Running – this is what I’m doing now. For the past 8-9 weeks I’ve been doing the Couch to 5k program and it’s been great. I run about three times a week and I’m signed up for a 5k this weekend. Running works for me because it’s basically free and I can do it right out my front door, and it really feels like a good workout. Running is also going to be tough to keep up with during the summer when it’s 90-100 degrees at 5pm, which is my only time slot to run.
- Gym – I am really excited about this option. A free one is opening up at work next month so I’ll be able to add in elliptical, spin, and weights.
- Yoga – Sometimes I do this at home on my off days. I really need to do more of it though.
- Taking the stairs – A few times a day at work I have to go up two floors (which is four flights of stairs) so I walk it instead of taking the elevator. It doesn’t sound like much but it’s actually not that easy!
Food

This is the area that I probably need the most help in. It’s what is really going to help me lose the weight I want to, and it also seems to be the hardest!
- Cut back on sweets and sugar in general – I was addicted to sweets, especially chocolate. I was having multiple desserts a day. A few weeks ago I instituted a two desserts per week policy, and although I haven’t kept to it completely, I have drastically cut back. Eventually I want to get to a point where I am not taking in much sugar at all.
- Calorie counting. I don’t mean for the rest of my life, but this is what works for me to actually lose weight. I just want to lose those last few pounds, and then go into maintenance mode.
- Learn to cook healthier recipes with more whole foods. It’s hard when you have a picky husband and toddler to deal with, but I’m determined to try.
- Smoothies! I’m very excited about incorporating these into our diet once I get a blender.
- Meatless. I want to eat less meat overall for financial, health, and environmental reasons.
- Water intake. I’m soooo bad about this. I’d love to do at least half my weight in ounces per day.
General Health Maintenance
- Flossing – my old nemesis. It’s so annoying to me and I can’t seem to stick with the habit!
- Vitamins. I don’t think everyone needs a multivitamin, but since I’m breastfeeding and it’s possible for me to get pregnant again eventually, a prenatal is probably a good idea.
- Regular doctor’s visits and screenings. Although I do have a primary care physician, right now I just do yearly exams with my OB. I am good about going to the dentist every six months, and recently added a dermatologist into the mix. I do need to remember to do my monthly breast exam.
- Use all natural products. I’ve been working on this transition for years and I am pretty much there, although I’m still searching for my favorite brands. I also want to start making my own cleaning products at home, and use my essential oils more.
Okay, so that’s a lot of stuff to tackle! I feel good about it though. Right now I’m just working on 1-3 items at a time instead of doing a huge overhaul, but that may need to change soon if I want to make some real progress.

Can you think of anything I’m missing? Where do you stand with your physical health? What would you say your goals are?
May 20, 2014
liam at four months

He:

>Laughs! Sometimes! Well…he’s done it a few times anyway.

>Also smiles at anyone that looks him in the face.

>Wears 6-9 month clothes, but is in between the small and medium diaper sizes, so he tends to leak at the moment. I have to send at least three pairs of pants with him each day just in case.

>Still has the bump on his head from his cephalohematoma. Supposedly it will reabsorb eventually, but it’s going very slowly. I like to rub it.

>Loves the mirror.

>Can roll over both ways (mobility is coming)!!

>Is a squirmer.

>Constantly has his hands in his mouth, but he hasn’t started producing too much drool yet.

>Sleeps well almost every night to the point where if he doesn’t I get worried about his health.

>Has such a great old man hairline.

I:

>Am trying to get Liam to attach to a lovey, just because I think it’s cute. And he does seem a little calmer when he has something like that to grab onto.

>Like putting him in these one piece romper things.

>Am running in a 5k race this coming weekend, but I haven’t run that far yet. I think I can do it though.

>Finally got some quilt batting, and some supplies for another project I’m excited about.

>Went through clothes that my mom had saved from when my brothers and I were little. Some of them are so dorky, but it’s crazy how familiar they are. Some of them I took home for my kids which is pretty neat. :)

>Think I need to acquire a camera separate from my iPhone.

>Need to do another “day in the life” soon.

>Remain grateful for what a calm, happy baby Liam is in general. I thought that since Meredith was such a good baby I was surely going to get a hard one next. With all of our other stresses over the last few months, I can’t imagine adding a colicky baby to that mix. He just goes with the flow and adds a lot of happiness to our lives.

For reference:

0 months
1 month
2 months
3 months

Meredith at 4 months

May 19, 2014