Happy New {School} Year

Tanner goes back to school next Wednesday!

Something about a new school year sort of brings up the same emotions and motivation I get at New Year's time. It's similar for me in that by now I've usually gotten lax on some of my "resolutions" and in many areas of my life - be it meals, fitness, activity schedules, etc...and the school year starting anew gives me a chance to put a good system in place {hopefully one I can stick to!}

Here are some things I'm excited about for the new school year and some things I plan on doing:

1. Excited that my fitness routine will be so much easier to keep on schedule! The gym is directly across the street from Tanner's school, and since he has to be dropped off around 7:30, that leaves me plenty of time before my 9am work day starts to get a workout in every day. I literally have no excuse to not make it to the gym. I like that. BONUS: Tanner starts baseball on Tuesday and Thursday nights from September 17th to October 24th and his practices are at the Patriot's Point field. For those of you not familiar, that is right next to the base of this bridge which gives me the great opportunity to walk/jog it with Breckin in the stroller while Tanner does his baseball practice:

2. Meal Planning: Always like to get a little more creative with Tanner's school lunches than I am during the summertime. Last year, his lunches looked mostly like this {here's his lunch from the first day of school}:

Additionally, since I'm prepping his lunches, I'm also better about prepping my own snacks and lunch for work so I don't make bad decisions. As you know, I've made a goal of eating a lot more clean than I was, and I plan on sticking with it to meet my fitness goals.

3. I'd like to have more of a routine of sorts going when we get home after the school/work day. On the days Tanner doesn't have a sport/activity going on, I'd like to set aside time for chores and homework, then get a healthy dinner on the table {with a menu plan in place} and have some good quality play time before winding down with the bedtime routine. I also want to make it a goal to prepare all the things I need for the next day the night before {after kiddos are in bed}. It really makes a difference in our mornings...especially with my attitude...since I won't be rushing as much.

I'll be sharing how I plan on accomplishing these tasks, how I'm going to stay organized and of course giving you updates. My main goal is to truly find a system that works, that the family can get on board with and we won't get lazy with. I know there's gotta be such a system out there!

Are you excited for the new school year {if you have kids}? Do you feel like it's a time of renewal as well? What are some of your goals this {school} year? Any tips on staying organized? I'd love to hear from you...

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Link Love

1. This post about body image in today's society...especially after just having a baby. P.S. I think Kate Middleton looked beautiful the day she and Prince William introduced Prince George to the world...postpartum belly and all. {Pssst...another good article on the subject.}

2. The letter from a mother to her son about dating really brought tears to my eyes. I want my boys to follow these rules.

3. If you've never watched The New Girl starring Zooey Deschanel, I highly suggest you do, if not purely for Schmidt's crazy-funny lines. Here's an article that shares some of the best ones.

4. Think Trader Joes is all organic? A common misconception. What are they hiding from you?

5. "Hurry up" is a phrase I'm guilty of uttering at my kids all too often. This post really turned it around...and I plan on letting my boys take in life and enjoy it.

In other non-related news, it's my dad's 56th birthday today.

♥ Happy Birthday, Dad ♥

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Are You Going To Have Any More {Babies}?

I get asked this question quite a lot. Ironically, usually when I'm yelling at  redirecting one and chasing the other {What, I look like I'm bored and need something to do?}

I thought I pretty much knew the answer to that question.

"No, we're done," I typically say. Reasons are as follows:

a) because the thought of possibly having three boys really freaks me out and if my past is any indication, The Man Upstairs loves to get a good laugh, usually at my expense. Do I really think he would ever grant me with a girl? I used to think so, but now I'm not so sure.

b) because it sucks trying to get back in shape after pregnancy! It only gets harder with each one {not to mention, your window of time to fit it in gets smaller with each one too}. At least that was how it was for me. I still struggle with the havoc Breckin wreaked on me...and it's like, if I get even just a little lazy about working out, my body is even quicker to show it. Hitting 30 hasn't helped either.

P.S. - I've been pretty lazy about fitness this month so far and I just took my measurements...ugh is all I have to say...I've got some work to do. More on that later.

c) because doesn't this family look complete to you?

Confession: Jake and I had a "slip-up" last month at pretty much the right time in my cycle, so we freaked the f*** out thought I could be pregnant.

I did the best I could to mentally prepare myself for a positive test. Went over in my head what we would do about finances and my job, how we would incorporate a new child's bedroom in our house, how I would not put my head through a wall...yada yada yada.

I did everything I could to let myself accept the fact that what was done was done...it was just a waiting game at this point...and that if that little stick shows me a plus sign...we'd be OK.

Long story short...I took a couple tests {albeit a tad early....much like Phoebe, my body has always been faster than modern medicine in this area}. Both negative. Since I had taken them early, I was still unsure, plus they were from the Dollar Store, so how reliable could they really be? But thankfully, I eventually got exactly the sign I needed to confirm it was a negative, right on time. I had prepared and prepared myself mentally for the possibility of another pregnancy...and my sigh of relief was here!

But what I didn't prepare myself for, was how I would feel when I found out I wasn't.

Somewhere in the middle of all the anxiety in preparing for "the worst", I think I might have unknowingly got excited about the idea of another baby. Well, shut the front door.

Sometimes it takes losing something to really realize how you feel about it. Even though I didn't technically lose a pregnancy, I just am not. In the words of Rachel {I'm a FRIENDS addict obviously}, how can I be upset over something I never had?

So now my answer to the question is:

a) I'm open to the possibility.

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Monday Musings

It is officially the last full week of summer for us. Tanner goes back to school next Wednesday and next Monday we are meeting his teacher. I'm glad we're all ready to go...school uniforms and supplies are bought. I did not feel like rushing around the last couple of weeks before school, so I took care of that shizz last month. {Can I get a He** Yeah? - Isn't it sad the things us mothers feel like we need frat-bro-like recognition for?}

Anyway, this weekend was pretty good...we started out with the Under The Sun concert on Friday night. It was so good to see some of my favorite 90s bands...Gin Blossoms, Sugar Ray and Smash Mouth. Oh, and this teenage dream come true:

Even though I wasn't close enough to touch him or talk to him...being within less than a football field's length of him, I was all giddy and shit. Hubby thought I was acting like a lovestruck teenager...and I was like, "Well, yeeeah!" I know I'm not the only one who loved me some Mark McGrath. Can I get another He** Yeah?

Saturday made for an early morning since I had to pick up the boys from Nana's by 7:30am. We ended up taking advantage and hitting the play park before it got super-hot out. {We also had it all to ourselves.}

Oh and by the way, Hubby scalped my youngest this weekend without my permission. He does look really cute though. However, the look of innocence is GONE. Nothing there to hide the mischievous look in his eyes, or the constant bumps on his forehead.

We also made some time to hit the pool.

And Breckin learned to ride his new scooter {in the last one he runs back to Daddy to give him a five}:

On Sunday, the boys and I went to the pool again {oh btw, Hubby was on his USCG duty weekend, so that's why he wasn't with us}. We also went to the grocery store {exhilerating, I know}.

During naptime/quiet time that day, in making good on my clean eating plans, I prepped all of my healthy snacks and lunches {the boys' too} for the week {not all is pictured here, I do not plan to live on salad...there will be plenty of chicken and fish}:

And look at this protein-spinach-smoothie-lovin' toddler I'm raising {big bro liked it too} - great way to sneak in some really healthy foods for the little ones:

Have a great week!

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Scalped.

As I was on the computer {go figure} last night after Breckin's big opening of the presents ceremony...Jake and Breckin both came in and said "Hey look, Mom!" I turned around and I saw this:

 

OK well, not exactly that. This is obviously a picture I took of him in my car this morning. But you get what I mean. 

My baby's sandy sun-kissed blonde locks...GONE. Jake {whom I'm now referring to just as "the sperm donor"} claimed it was a "rite of passage" now that he's three.

No, Sperm Donor, that's not how it works.

But alas, I must now deal with the fact that he no longer has the sweet baby innocence that his hair had portrayed. Now I can see all too clearly those mischievous eyes...and all of the goose egg-sized knots on his forehead {rough and tumble, this one}.

It is cute how he's so proud of his "big boy" haircut though:

 

He enjoyed all the attention from the daycare ladies fawning over the new 'do. What a ladies' man. Guess I have bigger problems to focus on than the haircut. But for nostalgia's sake...look at the before to see the difference:

This was Breckin shortly before the "scalping" at his birthday dinner last night.

We're sending him off to boot camp next week.

 

Friends/Family - if you would like any of the pictures you see of us on the blog, please just right-click on the image and save it to your computer. You are welcome to print at your leisure! They are all high-pixel images. If you do not know my family or me, you probably shouldn't right-click/save or print any of our images. Just saying.

Five on Friday

Happy Friday, Loves!

I'm ready for a great weekend, how about you? Here's my Five on Friday:

1. Got some new jammies this week...these are from Victoria's Secret. They were available in-store, which is where I got them, but also available online. Don't forget to use the code FALL13 to save some moo-lah on your order.

{source}

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Guess this warrants throwing away a few pairs of t-shirts and sweats.


2. Hubby and I are headed to see the Under The Sun concert tonight featuring Sugar Ray, Smash Mouth and a few other 90s bands. Nostalgic, for sure.

3. Thinking of going blonde again - it's been YEARS! I've been a brunette for so long...seeking a little change. It's hard for me though because I have a hard time pulling it off. I can't be like a "yellow" blonde, it has to be more on the ashy-neutral side. I'm thinking something like this would be perfect:

I'll take her face and body while I'm at it. {I kid, I kid.}

4. I'm making a conscious effort to really eat more clean. I saw this article on How Does She? and it is great. Go check it out - but finish reading my post first, please. :-)

5. And I don't really have much else, so I'll leave you with this lovely quote I found on Facebook this week...something us parents should all have realized by now:

Also participating in:


 


Have a wonderful weekend!

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Blogging Sucks.

CONFESSION: I thought about quitting this blog last week. Gladly, I've decided to stick with it, but here's an explanation...

I had hit a wall with blogging. It used to be something fun for me…I love to write and being able to express myself through a page I designed on my own was a perfect hobby. I also loved gaining inspiration from other bloggers - whether it was fashion, interior design, or just living life in general.

But there have been a few negatives to this blogging “thing”...

• I put a lot of time and effort into my blog. That equals time I could be using to play with my kids, have meaningful conversations with my hubby, or just plain get shit done around the house. {My laundry piles higher by the day and my floors literally grasp my bare feet.} And for what/whom do I do this? I want people to read my posts…but I don’t really know if they do. I go weeks without a single comment – and I typically post every weekday, so my blog is considered “active” and full of content. Where is everybody? Am I missing something? I constantly find myself wondering what I’m doing wrong…what I’m not doing that “successful” bloggers are. After just over a year with this blog, with the exception of my Facebook page, my followers are less than 100. I watch other blogs grow to hundreds, even thousands sometimes, in their first year. Maybe I’m just not that lovable? It’s a kick in the crotch to my ego. 

• In relation to bullet point #1, I have blog envy. I literally read some people’s blog posts and get bored, yet find they have loyal readers and constant commenters on their posts. I don’t get it. I find myself feeling bad about myself when I read some of these blogs. Blogs are supposed to be read for enjoyment…I’m not getting that most of the time. I’ve literally stopped following certain blogs because of this. It’s stupid and superficial, I know, but I can’t help myself. This post on jealousy and envy in the blogging community helped me know I was not alone in my feelings as well as offered tips on dealing with it. 

• I have friends, friends of friends and acquaintances that are active in Blogland. They have blogs of their own, or read many daily. Some of these “friends” aren’t even following my blog or social media pages. They know I have a blog. I comment on their blogs regularly. I follow their social media pages and/or their blogs. Yet they seemingly pretend I don’t exist. This is probably the worst thing I’ve found in my personal blogging experience. Some people are fake, pretentious and/or snobby…it hurts to find out this way. The worst part is not knowing why. And while I should feel like that is a personal issue of theirs, it still hurts me. I always hear about this “supportive” world of blogging…yet I don’t even feel supported by those in the blogging community that I actually know outside of the Internet. That’s sort of like blog code…you follow your friends or people you actually know…otherwise it’s a fucking slap in the face. I must say this post I found did make me feel a little better.

•  I’m not rich. This is more apparent to me than ever now that I’m a blogger. I don’t own a DVF dress or a pair of Jimmy Choo’s. Again, a hit to the ego when many of these bloggers are constantly flaunting their seemingly daily would-cost-me-an-entire-paycheck purchases. Even worse when they don’t even have to have a job. I hate feeling inadequate about my life because I shouldn’t. Yet seeing this stuff every day leaves me wanting more. It’s natural to want things, but it gets out of hand when you start doubting the value of all the things you already do have. I’ve lost that balance and healthy point of view and I need to get it back.

So basically, I’d just been feeling down lately and I chalked a lot of it up to blogging. This hobby had stopped being fulfilling…it was causing more angst than joy. I felt like I was not always being authentic in my posts. Sometimes I’d post to “keep up” and stay relevant.

However, I knew I truly didn't want to STOP blogging, but I needed to figure out what I want to get out of it, what I truly want to be blogging about and whether I want to continue reading some of the blogs that I do...or at least working on myself so I don't feel of less value as a person just because someone can afford things I can't or travels places I don't.

I'm also going to stop putting my time and energy into unsupportive people, whether it be in the Blogosphere or real life.

Maybe some of you have felt or do feel this way…how have you dealt with it? I thought about not posting this…but in the end, I had to. It’s one of those honest, raw, from-the-heart posts.

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Three Years Ago Today...

I was blessed with this beautiful boy.

Now he is a "big boy" - turning 3 today.

He is the sweetest, most good-spirited child...loved by all who know him...easy to make friends...great sense of humor...and just lovable in every sense of the word. Happy Birthday to my sweet Breckin.

You can read more on my family blog here.

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Happy 3rd Birthday, My Sweet Son

via

 
Three years ago today...our little family of three became four. Tanner became a big brother and I officially earned the title of "Mom of All Boys" {still hoping to remedy that some day soon}. This sweet little baby entered this world and his presence has been such a blessing in our lives. Breckin has always been the happiest, bounciest little boy with such a big spirit. He has stolen our hearts, and those of everyone he knows.

A Few Minutes Old

Our First Photo as a Family of Four

First Kiss from Big Brother

6 Months

9 Months

One Year

Circa 19-21 Months

Just About 2 Years Old - First Haircut

24-26 Months

24-26 Months



29 Months

30 Months

30 Months

30-31 Months

30-31 Months

30-31 Months

30-31 Months

31-32 Months

32 Months

34 Months

35 Months

Happy 3rd Birthday, My Sweet Boy.

 

Friends/Family - if you would like any of the pictures you see of us on the blog, please just right-click on the image and save it to your computer. You are welcome to print at your leisure! They are all high-pixel images. If you do not know my family or me, you probably shouldn't right-click/save or print any of our images. Just saying.