Don't Focus On A Number

After E was born I remember writing a post that talked about envying those who were able to bounce back quickly after having a baby. Which let me say, to all those who did, you are amazing!!! While it's amazing carrying a life it has a tremendous impact both physically and mentally. 

When I got pregnant, I was at my lowest weight which I think was around 115 pounds. When I gave birth to E I was 173 pounds. Yes, you read that correctly. I gained almost 60 pounds. I remember being nervous every time I went to the doctor that I was going to get yelled at for weight gain, but I never did. Baby was healthy, I was healthy, and I was measuring just fine. I didn't eat terribly and I still worked out but the weight still came.

When I got cleared to work out at 6 weeks, I was relieved. My focus immediately went to losing the weight and I stupidly went to put on pre-pregnancy clothes. I had seen a friend who had a baby a few months before me have no problem fitting into her pre pregnancy clothes, so I thought I could. I immediately lost it and started crying. I struggled with that for a while, I wanted to bounce back quickly. I stressed myself out because I was focused on that and in doing so I started stress eating. Horrible combination.

I soon realized that my body just isn't like that and it's okay. Some are lucky enough to do the bare minimum and have the weight fall off while some have to work a little harder. It's okay either way. At the end of the day being happy with who you are is far more important. My goal was to be happy with myself, there wasn't a specific number I had in mind. I wanted to be comfortable in my own skin again and I wanted to be an example to E. I chose to not kill myself to get where I wanted to be. I went through this before with weight gain after fertility treatments. It was rough.

I share this side by side not to show weight loss but to explain to you what I see. On the left I was 2 months postpartum and I was miserable. I was so down on myself and disappointed that I hadn't "bounced back".

On the right is a photo from last week. I see someone who is happy! Happy with who she is and finally comfortable in her own skin again. Am I at the weight that I wanted to be after I gave birth? Absolutely not, but it's okay. I'm a work in progress. I have stretch marks, flabby skin, and a beautiful daughter who gave me all that. :)

It has taken me almost 11 months to get to that point. But if it had taken me more time than that's okay.

You see, feeling good about yourself does not have to focus on a number. It should focus on mind, body, and spirit. We live in a society where image is everything, it shouldn't be that way.
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Being comfortable in your own skin and having confidence in yourself is all that matters.

Birthday Weekend

This past weekend I celebrated my 32nd birthday. 32?! I have to say that my 30's have been the best! 

I'll be the first to admit that I am not big on celebrating my own birthday, however, I will celebrate everyone else's and sing them Happy Birthday all day long haha. We didn't have anything big planned and I was perfectly fine with that. 

Kyle of course wanted to celebrate so I obliged. On Friday, he spoiled me with homemade orange chicken and fried rice. It was an early night for us because we had to be up early for another race. We ran the Digital Ally Open 5k. It was held near a golf course and was sponsored by a golf tournament that started yesterday. Each participant received 2 ground passes so we will use those this weekend to check out the tournament. 

It was a great event but let me tell you hills in Kansas are a bitch! haha. 

That night I met up with 2 friends, Lauren and Lisa, for an awesome girls night/birthday celebration. I met both through blogging many years ago (mine and Lisa's husbands actually met back in 2007 at an Army school prior to us meeting, it's a small world). We ate, laughed, and enjoyed margaritas. 

Sunday was my actual birthday and we were invited to brunch by a friend of Kyle's that he worked with at Polk. Our neighbors also went (it's like 6 degrees of separation here because you are bound to find people who know each other) and we had a great time. 

The rest of the day was spent shopping and just relaxing with my 2 favorite people and my furry babies. They gifted me with a spa day and I can't wait to use it. 

I FaceTimed with my family, thank goodness for technology because it makes days like this that much better. It was a great way to kick off my 32nd year of life.

I hope you all had a great weekend!

Disconnecting and Reconnecting

One of my biggest goals for this move was to step outside of my comfort zone and become more social. When we were at Polk we purposely stayed to ourselves and stayed low key. We had a handful of friends but we rarely made it a regular thing to hang out with friends. Now some of you may be thinking how silly that is. Believe me I understand. 

Let me explain why we did this. When we were at Bliss and Kyle was a company commander it was nonstop social interaction. Between interactions with soldiers in the company and FRG responsibilities for me it was people overload and it was exhausting after a while. Not only was I company FRG leader but I was a Battalion Senior Advisor (meaning I was coordinating events for 600-700 soldiers and their families). There was never a day that I was by myself, don't get me wrong I loved it but it was exhausting. I'm not the most outgoing person so it took a lot for me to step outside of my comfort zone. We also had several friends that we hung out with because we knew them from previous posts. 

Now don't get me wrong we do not take our friendships for granted but there comes a time when you need to decompress. When I found out that there was going to be no FRG at Polk, I knew that was a sign for us to just recuperate. I was exhausted, I was drained from the constant on the go that I was used to and I needed to just focus on myself, my family, and school. We had 1-2 friends that we saw on occasion but we were happier just shutting in on the weekends and doing nothing (well minus doing races). It was a much needed 2 1/2 years of very limited social interaction, I was able to just enjoy the time and not have any responsibilities that went outside of the home. 

Before we arrived in Kansas we made the promise to each other to be more social. To actively engage with people and to go beyond our comfort zones. We have a large group of friends here, but the best part is that I have my group of friends, Kyle has his, and then we are all able to come together as a group. It's an awesome balance. We are more social with our neighbors as well, we find ourselves sitting outside most nights talking with neighbors and letting the kids play. Now that I am part of the Stroller Strong Moms group I have been able to expand my interactions and meet friends that way, I plan on volunteering in some capacity on post, and I also have those who we get together with for playdates. E is also becoming social, she is playing with other kids and I love that.

I know that I would not be able to do these type of things had I not taken the break that I did. I needed the chance to focus on other things. For the first time in a long time I feel rejuvenated and ready to make this an amazing year. There is no shame in shutting yourself in and disconnecting for a while. Honestly, it could be the best thing you ever do. 

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday everyone! I feel like this week has flown by. It's crazy. It's going to be a good weekend in our house because it's my birthday on Sunday! 

There is no better way to end the week than to recap some of my favorite things.

* Stroller Strong Moms workout class. 

I was really nervous about going to one of these classes because I was unsure if I would "fit in" but I was immediately put at ease. I went with a few friends and it was awesome. Being able to work out and take E with me is a huge benefit. I signed up for the monthly membership which is good for unlimited classes. I plan on attending 3 days a week which for me is a good start.

* Shatto Milk. 

In the past I haven't been a big milk drinker but let me tell you that this milk has changed that. It comes from a small family owned farm north of Kansas City and is bottled in glass bottles. I don't know about you but I find something amazing about how milk in glass bottles tastes. I bought this at the grocery store but they also do home delivery (plus they have so many other products like cheese curds and bacon). 

* WTForecast App

This app cracks me up! I really don't like the traditional weather apps so this one is perfect for me. It's  humorous and makes me chuckle every time I open it. Go download it now!

*Balsamic Glazed Chicken recipe.

Good gracious, it's delicious! I'm not kidding you when I say that I have made it at least 5 times in the last month. It is simple and so flavorful. I mean you really can't beat a one pan meal. You can add vegetables of any kind if you want. A few times I added asparagus to it and it was great.

* Tahari Fiona Wedge Sandal

I am normally really picky when it comes to shoes but we ventured into DSW and I fell in love with these wedge sandals. They are really comfortable and versatile. Let's just call them an early birthday gift to myself. :) 

What are some of your favorite things as of late?

Here is to an amazing weekend!

Experiencing Life With Kids

One of the most common things we heard before we had E was "You won't be able to do the things you want to do once you have kids". For a while we really did think this way because SO many people said it. We thought that we would be stuck at home all the time.

When I was pregnant we received one of the best pieces of advice from a friend. 

"Kids shouldn't stop you from doing the things you like to do, kids should just be added to the fun."

We knew from the start that we would implement this because we enjoy seeing new places and experiencing new things. We like exploring places and we wanted E included no matter what. When she was born we wanted her to be comfortable in public places, her first outing was at a week old. We did our best to not alter our way of life simply because we had a baby. We continued to go to restaurants and she ultimately learned to go with the flow. Is it always going to be easy to go places with her? No, but why can't we at least try. We aren't strict on nap times, if we are out, we don't rush home so she can nap. She is an expert carseat sleeper, which is so appreciated. We want her to appreciate history and culture, this is why we travel with her. While it may only be to the next town over there is still so much to experience. 

We added her into our running, she LOVES the jogging stroller. She did her first race with us when she was 3 weeks old and has continued to run with us. She sees the stroller and gets excited haha. She is part of that journey now. 

I got a few comments on my last post about how it was irresponsible of us to take her to a distillery (I did not publish them because I don't want the negativity, but I did address them privately because they are certainly entitled to their opinion). I don't understand how it's irresponsible to include our daughter in things we do. She was in a carrier and not partaking in alcoholic beverages. We ensure before we do anything that kids are welcome, if not, we won't do it. It's simple as that. But if kids are allowed and we want to do it, it will happen. We know that there will be things we can't include her in and we know that we need our time as a couple as well.

Life is an adventure and we want to include E in every aspect of that. The addition of kids shouldn't take away from your experiences, it should enhance them. Being able to see and experience places through your kid's eyes is incredible. E is still young but we see how inquisitive she is with every new experience and it's amazing. I can't wait to continue these adventures as she gets older. I am grateful that Kyle and I are on the same page when it comes to this. 

At the end of the day, we are a family, and we are experiencing life together. 

Weekends Are For Exploring!

Since we likely only have a year in Kansas we promised that we would see all that we could in that time. 

On Friday we headed out to Atchison to pick up our race packets for the Amelia Earhart 8k on Saturday morning. On our way home we decided to stop in Historic Weston (which is in Missouri not Kansas). This town is known for Lewis and Clark stopping here and for it being the oldest settlement in the Platte Purchase of 1863. It was also a point for the Oregon Trail and Santa Fe Trail. We are big on history so we were kids in a candy store haha. 

It will filled with amazing little shops and restaurants. An adorable bed and breakfast plus a few small wineries. 

We had lunch at a place called Tin Kitchen. They had some of the best BBQ we have ever eaten!

E was a fan!

After lunch we walked around, checked out a few antiques stores and headed towards home. 

On our way home we came across the Holladay Distillery. We jokingly wondered if they did tours, 10 minutes later we had a reservation and headed back to check it out. They are a bourbon distillery and it is the oldest distillery west of the Mississippi (1856). After 30 years they finally began distilling bourbon again last year and after 20 years started doing tours again. We definitely came at the right time! They also produce different Vodkas under the name McCormick Distillery. 

What an awesome place!!! As we waited for the tour to start we purchased a few drinks. I had a drink that tasted just like a bomb pop, omg so good!

*Yes, we are those people who brought our baby to a distillery.* 

We were taken in the room where the mash is made for the bourbon and where the alcohol is extracted. We were able to taste the mash in various forms which was pretty incredible. 

The bourbon is made with limestone spring water that was discovered by Lewis and Clark. This is the exact location where it was discovered.

Next up was the barrel room, this warehouse holds 10,000 barrels of bourbon. It won't be ready until 2019.

The last stop was the bottling room where all of the vodka that is made is bottled and packaged. We weren't able to taste the bourbon but we did get to try their different vodkas and they are delicious! It was a great way to spend an afternoon. 

Saturday was race day. We were up bright and early to head back to Aitchison for the Amelia Earhart 8k. It was advertised that there was hill during this race. HAHAHAHAHA! That was a lie, there were 3 pretty epic hills (whoever says Kansas is flat is lying, well at least this side of the state isn't). 

Despite the hills it was an awesome run. This is the best I have felt in a while and I was thrilled. I ended up placing 2nd in my age group and Kyle placed 3rd in his.

It was a perfect way to start the day. We ended up with homemade pizza and ice cream in honor of our nephew's birthday. 

Sunday was the standard grocery shopping, errands, laundry, and prepping for the new week. 

I hope you all had a great weekend!

Captured Moments

A few days ago we received our family photos. Words can't describe how much I love them. This is the first time we have had professional photos taken as a family and I am so glad we did. I apologize in advance for the photo dump but I couldn't help myself. 

These are captured moments that I will always cherish.

I hope you all have an amazing weekend!

 We are running an 8k tomorrow in a nearby town that's part of Amelia Earhart festival, so it should be a great time. :)

On another happy note, our amazing nephew, Grayson turns 6 tomorrow. So I want to wish him a very Happy Birthday!! We love you buddy!