Paleo: One Month

As some of you know I started the Paleo Diet about a month ago. I was tired of feeling tired and sluggish all day and not losing any weight despite all the exercising I was doing. I had heard little things here and there about it. I got up one Tuesday and decided to just do it. I bought the book so i could learn the "why" behind it. I knew if I knew why I would stick to it much better. The first week was pretty tough simply because I didn't know what to eat. I quickly figured it out though because I was HUNGRY!! My friend, Tina, helped me find some recipes. Another friend, Michelle, sent me a link to a blog with awesome recipes as well! So the second week was much easier and I really like the food. I have not missed anything at this point. And when I want something I have a bite or two and I am good. I call it cheating but I have not had any craving to just indulge in anything. And...I feel SO much better!!! If I do cheat I can always tell a difference in my energy afterward. I feel blah. I am sleeping better, exercising more, and finally the pounds are coming off. I am half way to my goal which I didn't think I would get to for another few months. The author of the book says to try it for at least a month and see how you feel. So it's been a month...and I definitely plan to keep going! We've had pizza, coconut shrimp, pesto shrimp, yummy bread, muffins, and more. All Paleo style of course!! Kevin and I went to Wild Goose Festival this past weekend (more on that in my next post) so sticking to the diet was more of a challenge. I brought my own almonds, bananas, apples, almond butter and bread. But the food choices for meals was limited and not very Paleo friendly. I was able to piece things together though and it was fine. I resisted all the pastries when I got our coffee! I'm so glad I finally found something that is beyond a diet. I feel like this is a lifestyle change for me. Kevin has been so supportive in trying all the meals I have made and he seemed to like them. Since I am buying less carbs, grains, legumes, etc. the girls are eating better too. It made me laugh last night when I was making our dog's food for the week, which includes brown rice, and both girls got really excited and begged me for some! I hadn't realized we haven't had rice for the last month. So Jonas (the dog) had to sacrifice a little and they each got a little bowl. They were so ecxited and ate every bite!

What a Great Daddy!

I love that at 12:30 (ish) everyday our house becomes very quiet as two little girls take their naps. It sometimes lasts an hour, sometimes 3. But it is bliss. But for some reason on Saturdays it just seems so much sweeter when Kevin is home with us and we all crash. Today I had put Hadley to bed and laid down to read. He was putting Ayda to bed but never came out. When I flipped on the video monitor I found this...

They were both passed out in Ayda's bed. What made me smile even more is knowing that Ayda would be so excited to wake up from her nap next to her daddy. Every night she asks him if he'll sleep with her. He usually will lay down with her but I think she's a little disappointed when she wakes up and he's gone. I asked her after nap today if Daddy took a nap with her and she grinned and said "Yes!". I love watching the bond and relationship between them develop everyday. Hadley is still a momma's girl but she definitely has some sweet moments with her daddy too. I am so thankful to be married to a man who treasures me and our girls the way he does. He encourages us, calms us, humors us, challenges us, etc. We are truly blessed!

Splashville

My best friend, Jen, came to visit with her two boys this week. We had a blast!! Her boys are almost 4 and almost 2. Her oldest, Nathan, and Ayda had so much fun playing. We got up Wednesday with nothing really to do. We had 4 energetic preschoolers/toddlers and 2 tired mommas. We finally decided to suck it up and take them to "Splashville" which is a fountain in Asheville that they could play in. The water shoots up at different times from the ground. Essentially it's a glorified sprinkler. I had talked to another friend of ours earlier about going so we gave her a call and we all decided to give it a try. And I'm SO glad we did. The kids had so much fun!! Hadley even played in the water, which kinda surprised me. Ayda and Nathan ran all over! They were all worn completely out by the time we left. Ayda has asked a few times a day, every day since if we can go back! Another summer gem that we will be frequenting often!

Ayda was so sad to see Jen and the boys drive off last night to head home. She cried and kept saying "But I need to play wif Nafan!". She loved having him here and Andrew and Hadley tried their best to keep up with them. I'm so glad they came and we will have to do it again soon!!! :)

Ayda turned 3 1/2 on June 4. I usually don't keep up with "month birthdays" for her anymore. But for some reason her half birthday stood out to me. I am not going to lie...3 has been a tough age so far. Ayda has such a big personality and is so smart. She definitely knows what she wants! We have had our struggles but I also must say this has been one of my favorite ages so far too. Funny how I can love and hate it. Days where she is just loving life and having fun are a blast! She has such a wit about her and sense of humor that keeps me laughing. So as we are into the second half of 3 and her 4th (how in the world?!) birthday will be here before long, I wanted to write down the things she is doing right now. 

Fashion: The girl has fashion and a strong opinion about it. The other day we were heading to the YMCA for me to work out and I realized she had on a nice sunday dress, pearls (fake), and her Easter sandles. For the Y!!!!! The girl loves clothes and wears dresses 95% of the time!

Learning: She loves Montessori. She has really missed being at school the past few weeks. She keeps asking when she will get to go back. I have some things at home that mimic what she has at school and she loves to sit at the table and work on them. She is writing her name better and better too! 

Ayda plays hard and then sleeps hard! Not much else to say. Below is a pic during nap time. She insisted on wearing her head band to bed! 

We really landed in a great neighborhood. There are lots of kids and everyone is so friendly. I am not sure we would make it without our neighbors across the street. They mow our front yard for us whenever they mow theirs and we have borrowed a cake pan (for when I had to make 150 brownies for Ayda's end of the year picnic!!) and a power drill to hang curtains. A couple weeks ago we had a neighborhood social. They had hot dogs and ice cream. We made it for ice cream after naps! There is an incredible play ground right next to the pool (totally saving me this summer). Ayda was really enjoying her ice cream below!

My water baby: Ayda still loves the water. She is a little more timid in the pool but she's taking swim lessons at the Y and doing awesome. And in the bath tub it's a whole other ball game. She has taught Hadley how to blow bubbles and they both get a kick out of that. And she loves to lay down in the water, have me take a picture, and she gets to see what her crazy hair is doing. The girl keeps me laughing for sure!

Ayda went through a little stage of not being so sure about her sister. Now that Hadley fights back Ayda didn't quite know what to do there. But after some discipline and chats about being kind and taking care of her sister they have really started to have fun together. I think Ayda needed to realize Hadley doesn't understand everything but that Ayda can teach her new things. Now they will play together and have a blast. Melts my heart!

So at 3 1/2 Ayda has her challenging moments but she also has more fun, hilarious, and sweet moments. She is so much fun to be with and the things that come out of her mouth keep us laughing. As my mom always says "That's so Ayda". So happy Half Birthday to Ayda! 

Major Update:

Ok so I am doing TERRIBLE with this blogging thing. I always have great intentions of keeping up to date and I just can't seem to do it. So here is a big update once again. Sorry for always having such long posts when I do finally post. Fortunately about 90% of my pictures are taken with my phone and I just found an app that allows me to make a collage of the pics I take. So I have clumped together several pictures for hopefully a less lengthy post!

Mother's Day:
My mom and Step-dad were supposed to come up and celebrate the weekend with us but my mom had a little set back with her leg. So they were unable to come which led us to having a pretty quiet weekend. With Mother's Day Sunday and Kevin's birthday Monday we did have a lot of fun celebrating both. It was nice to have a low key weekend though.

Kevin took me to Grove Park Inn for brunch with the girls. I was a little nervous about how they would behave at a nice place like that, but they were perfect!! Ayda LOVED being able to walk around and pick what she wanted to eat. And the ice-cream bar sealed the deal. And Hadley ate a ton of whatever we gave her. We really had a wonderful time, despite some nasty weather!!

These girls made me a momma and teach me new things everyday.

 Hadley Update:
Poor thing...I feel like I totally forget to update on all her changes. She is up to so much lately and I am really loving this stage. When she turned one she went through a sort of tough little stage. VERY clingy, VERY sensitive. We also started putting the pieces together to realize she was getting frustrated from competing with Ayda for toys, time, etc. Once we figured that out she really became so fun and happy again! At 14 months she still weighs 19 lbs and something. I don't think she has hit 20lbs yet. She is my little peanut! She has a big personality though. Because of her big sister she has discovered the "fire truck" shopping carts much earlier than Ayda ever did. She refuses to sit in a regular cart anymore and has a blast playing while we shop. She has been working on her molars to come through for a good 2 months and we have 1 to brag about. I am really hoping she cuts the other 3 really soon so we have a break before the 2 year molars start coming. She also LOVES to give us hugs and kisses. Makes my day everytime! She is so snuggly and sweet!

Dinner with Friends:
We have been so blessed to have made great friends already. I forget sometimes that we have only been here 6 months. We had dinner with a couple and their 1 year old at their house. They live on an old farm with mountains all around. It is absolutely gorgeous! The girls (and Kevin) enjoyed playing on their old school rope swing. It was a perfect evening weather wise and we really enjoyed that time with them!

Dupont Falls:

We went for our second time a couple weeks ago per Ayda's request. It's a little bit of a drive but so worth it. The hike is about 2 miles, of which Kevin ends up carrying Ayda 75% of it (bless him!). I opt to wear Hadley on my back in the Ergo! The falls are so pretty though. There are several you can hike to and both times proved to be such a sweet time with our family. 

New Diet:
I don't want to say diet because that's not really how I view it. But I was so tired of feeling exhausted all the time, tired of working out and "eating healthy" but not losing a pound, and just feeling overall blah. I sort of just got up one morning and told Kevin, something has to change. I had heard something about Paleo so we looked into it. I ordered the book in order to really understand the do's and don'ts. And we jumped in. We are not 100% Paleo but I am definitely pretty close. And I felt the results immediately. I feel so much better and I can tell such a difference when I cheat. There was a neighborhood social this past Saturday with ice cream and I wasn't even tempted. It just didn't sound good (if you know me well...you knot that's not my norm). After 2 weeks of it I am really hoping to make this a lifestyle change. And i'm dropping some pounds! Added bonus. Below is a picture of a Paleo Pizza I made Sunday. The crust is made of cauliflower, egg, oregano, and garlic. Sounds gross (trust me I was skeptical) but it was really really yummy. Hadley even enjoyed a big piece!! Tonight is Pesto Shrimp and Zucchini! Can't wait!!

So that is that. We are staying busy and trying to get into a summer routine. Ayda is home till August so I am just trying to keep both girls busy! And they definitely keep me busy!

Mother's Day

It's Mother's Day! My husband let me sleep in! I only slept till 8 but since I usually get up at 6:30-7, that's sleeping in to me!

I became a mommy on December 4, 2008 when I held my sweet Ayda Grace for the first time. I had no idea how much I was about to change and be humbled in those first few moments. She has made being a mom the best and so much fun!

Then on March 25, 2011 I became a mommy to another precious little girl. Hadley Mei joined our family and again I fell in love. Being a mom to two kids brought on a whole different list of challenges but I wouldn't trade it for the world.

So on Mother's Day I really have my two little girls to thank. They challenge me, stretch me, love me (even in my not so lovable moments), teach me, and so much more. They make me laugh, cry, PRAY. They fill my arms with joy beyond any comparison. They are my heart! The day I became a mom my life changed forever!

And I can't leave out my own mom. She taught me so much about what being a mom is and the sacrifices that come with it. She too has brought so much to my life. She always thanked me for making her a mom and I thought that was so weird growing up. She always insisted she get me something on Mother's Day. Now I get it. My mom is the BEST and I love her beyond words! 

The Past Week

Last week Hadley caught whatever cold Kevin has had. Just some upper respiratory thing. She started running a fever Tuesday afternoon. It went as high as 104 one night. People ask me all the time these two questions...

When the girls run a fever what do you do?
We don't treat the fever. Our kids have never been given medication. When they have a fever we make sure they drink water and breast feed lots if they are still. We will comfort them with a cool cloth on their head and lots of snuggles. And most importantly, we take them to get checked by Kevin. If they are running clear (meaning the C1 and C2 bones in the neck are not subluxated) then we find comfort in knowing their body is doing what it needs. So we wait out the fever.

Do you take them to the pediatrician?
No. We take them to Kevin. Between Kevin's doctorate in Chiropractic and my nursing degree we can assess them to make sure they are fine. And if the dr prescribed meds we wouldn't give them anyway.

So back to Hadley...

Her fever started Tuesday. She was very congested as well. Stuffy/runny nose and congested cough. I took her to Kevin to get checked a few times. We have an instrument to check the girls at home but the one at his office is more accurate which we want when they are sick. Hadley was running clear each time we checked so we waited out the fever. It finally broke thru the night Saturday. Her congestion was better then too. Finally! She was pretty much herself Sunday.

Well Monday she wouldn't nurse well and woke from her nap very cranky. She would cry hysterically if I put her down and would fuss/cry when I held her. Not like her at all. We made it to bedtime and she went to bed without nursing. Second night which was weird. If she was weaning that is ok but to be so sudden was really strange. She woke up 4 times thru the night crying. We got up this morning and she was "happy" for about 10 minutes. Then she started back with fussing if I put her down. Thankfully we already were scheduled to see an Upper Cervical Chiropractor here in GA (we are in Atl this week visiting my mom). Hadley cried the whole way there (40 minutes) and became hysterical again when we arrived...before she was even checked.

Turns out she needed to be adjusted. Her second in her life. It was interesting to see her progression. She was adjusted and cried some after which is normal. I started nursing her, mainly for comfort. Within 10 minutes she was sitting in my lap playing quietly and smiling. I'm not lying when I say the last time she smiled was yesterday morning. Then we went in the playroom at the Chiropractors office and she played with Ayda some. She got checked again for a post adjustment reading and was good to go! She then slept the whole way back to my moms. We had lunch and I put her to bed for her nap. Again she was not interested in nursing which I figured was because she did so much at the chiropractors office.

After her nap she was sooooo much better. She woke up wanting to nurse right away. Then had a little snack. We ran to the grocery store and she had a blast with Ayda in the racecar. It was so good to see her happy again. We came home and I started cooking dinner and she played happily in the kitchen. And the night just kept getting better. By the end of tonight she was laughing, dancing, and being her silly self. How happy that makes me!! She nursed great to go to bed and went down without a fuss.

So if you ask me if I believe in what Kevin does my answer remains YES!! I have believed for a long time now but as I see something so drastic like yesterday and today it makes me want to tell everyone. And the best part is that I know once Hadkey fully beats this, her immune system will be even stronger than before.

Now I'm off to bed because I am one tired momma!!