Monday, October 19, 2015

Meal Plan Monday 10/20/15

This weekend I ran my 4th half marathon!  It wasn't the time I wanted and I'm disappointed, but I have to remember I had a baby four months ago and I have been battling a stupid knee injury for the past month.  It was the most painful run to date and because I was over compensating for my knee my back and hips are hurting a TON today.  Bah!  Anyway, I am happy I did it and I plan to complete my 5th in 2016!  I plan to keep running until I can't.  You're only young once, right?  HA!

As for meals this week we're keeping it fairly simple - we have a busy week this week!

Monday:  {Creamy Pesto Three Cheese Tortellini with Chicken}



Tuesday:  {Caesar Pasta Salad with Chicken (Rowen eats the noodles and chicken)}


Wednesday:  {Easy Taco Pie}


Thursday:  {5 Ingredient Broccoli Cheese Soup}





Friday, October 16, 2015

3-4 Month Baby Favorites

I highly doubt I'm sharing anything earth shattering with you, but these are our favorite products at the current stage Wyatt is in!  Take a look...

Love this bib with attached teether att at the end.  It's great that you don't need to carry an extra item that may get dropped and it's reversible so it's like having two bibs!

A must have for any teething baby.  Made of soft leather, with subtle squeaker that is easy for young babies to squeeze!

Perfect for gassy babies + they don't leak!  Only downside are all the parts you have to clean, but totally worth it!

Love these!  A daily must have for us!  They wipe away the day's germs.  I love them on non bath nights, I usually just wipe Wyatt down from head to toe!  Love the way they smell, too!

Wyatt loves his Bumbo.  I love that it gives his neck muscles a little workout and gives us a break from having him in our laps 24/7!

As I said in my previous post, Wyatt loves to hold on to something while he's falling asleep at night and this seems to do the trick + it's cute! 

Perfect for cold and flu season, which is now upon us...yuck!  I stuck one of these in both kids' rooms.   The plug-in itself is great because you can adjust the intensity of the aroma and it also has a soft green night light.




Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Happy 3/4 Months, Wyatt!

Our little man is growing up so fast, but he's still just a little guy with a big ol' noggin'!  Offical stats at his four month check up were:  14 lbs (19th %), 25 inches (19th %), and head is in the 80th percentile!


As far as his temperament goes, he is the most chill baby I’ve ever met!  Unless he’s starving or very tired, he doesn’t cry - he’s totally content 95% of the time!  His favorite thing to do is smile.  He literally smiles at everything and I love it…his little grin makes my heart melt!  He also adores his big sister.  He intently listens to her when she talks and I swear he looks for her when we carry him into a room then immediately grins from ear to ear when he sees her!  So cute!

As far as his eating habits go, he’s currently eating about 4.5-5 oz of formula every three hours.  We also plan to start him on rice cereal via a spoon this month!  We noticed he’s been drooling like crazy and when I mentioned it to his doctor at his 4 month checkup; she told me it’s a sign he’s ready to learn to swallow!  She recommended starting rice cereal and once he got the hang of swallowing, the drool would be less…until he starts teething, of course!  :)

Sleep.  Ah, sleep.  I am lucky to say he’s been consistently sleeping through the night since about 2.5 months!  As of lately though, he’s really been fighting going to sleep.  Normal routine is bottle and cuddles in the chair for a few minutes before we lay him down.  This worked perfectly up until about two weeks ago.  Now, he screams for a good 30 mins (on and off) until he finally cries himself to sleep.  A couple of nights ago after Googling “why does my baby all the sudden scream at bedtime” we decided to push up his bedtime an hour earlier (now 7pm), which has seemed to do the trick - no more screaming before bed!  Apparently we were missing that “window” and waiting too long to put him to bed. 

Up until about two weeks ago he was being swaddled at night, but not anymore.  We noticed he was fighting it so we stopped and he seems much more content.   The only real downside (in my opinion) to our nighttime routine is the fact he is still sleeping in his Rock ‘N Play Sleeper (in his own room).  I have mixed feelings about this – the pediatrician says as long as he comfortable and still sleeping through the night there was nothing wrong with it.  However, I feel like he needs to be in his crib, so I want to make the transition soon!

Other updates:

First Halloween is coming up – he’s going as Batman :)
Is SO close to rolling over – it’ll be any day now!
Really starting to put weight on his legs – loves to stand
Loves to sit in his bumbo
Grabs his pacifier and takes it out of his mouth all the time
Loves holding onto something while going to sleep








Tomorrow I'll have a  post about our favorite baby items for 3-4 months!  Stay tuned!

Watch me grow..



Tuesday, October 13, 2015

My Thrive Experience - 6 Weeks

I’m officially on week 6 of my 8 week Thrive experience!  I wanted to share my updated results today on the blog…


As I’ve said before, weight loss was not an initial goal of mine, but within a week of taking it I knew my eating habits were different (less sugar), my appetite was much less and I seemed to get fuller faster!  I don’t weigh myself on a regular basis, but I knew my beginning weight before I started taking Thrive and decided I would wait until the 4 week mark to weigh myself again.  The results…down 5 lbs!  I am now at my lowest weight in years!

People have asked me if I changed my workouts while taking Thrive and the answer is no.  I have not done anything out of my usual routine. I am currently training for my 4th half marathon, so my runs have been long, but no different than any of the other times I’ve trained.  Never, in the last four years, have I lost 5lbs while training for a race, which tells me this product truly does help enhance results from workouts!  I’ve also noticed my arms and legs are much more “trimmed”.  My arms appear smaller as do my thighs - results I never saw before taking Thrive.

As for how I feel physically while running, the true test will be my race next weekend!  I’ve been battling ITband issues, so unless that slows me up, I hope (fingers crossed) to run my fastest time yet! 

Another interesting thing I’ve noticed while on Thrive is that my hair has gotten thicker and my skin has improved!  I normally have very fine, somewhat thin hair, and very dry skin.  Lately, however, I’ve noticed my hair feels thicker than usual and my skin much more soft!  Two benefits I never expected!

My appetite is still a lot less than it was, my sleep is hard, and my energy level seems to come and go.  I noticed within the last two weeks that yes, I still get tired throughout the day, but not nearly as tired as I was getting before taking Thrive.  I’ve also noticed those “tired spells” leave very quickly.  I may feel tired for 5-10 minutes, but then a few minutes later I seem to snap right out of it!  I really notice my energy level at night…I get so much more accomplished in the evenings! 

In addition to my results, I am happy to say I now promote the product!  This has been a fun experience for me.  Some people ask, "what does it mean to promote", and basically it just means I am choosing to share my experience with the world and get paid for it!  There was zero cost to sign up as a promoter and quite honestly, the paychecks have surprised me!  I've made roughly $700 in six weeks...something I never even set out to do!  I am so happy I decided to do this, and I am excited to see what the future holds for me as a promoter, too!

All in all I am still very pleased with the product!  I’m on my second order, which I received for free by signing up two friends.  I plan to continue after my 8 week mark, too.  There are some other products Le-Vel offers that I am interested in trying in addition to my Thrive experience!  Stay tuned!


For more information on how Thrive can help you with your health goals or for information on how to earn extra money, please visit my {Thrive page} or feel free to send me an email!


Monday, October 12, 2015

Meal Plan Monday 10/12/15

Sorry.  I know I've been MIA from this blog for the last couple of weeks.  Things have just been crazy busy!  The past two weeks I did a terrible job at meal planning.  Ryan was away for a work trip, then I got sick with a stomach bug and we basically ate a bunch of crappy, boxed meals. We're back at it this week though - here's what we're planning!

Monday:  {Easy Cheesy Meatball Lasagna}


Tuesday:  {20 Minute Healthy Chicken Burritos}


Wednesday: {Crockpot Scalloped Potatoes & Ham}


Thursday:  {Chicken Cordon Beu Crescent Rolls}


Friday:  Not cooking

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