Why You Want Your Husband to Workout With You

Okay, so I'm really writing this for my own benefit. I REALLY want Neal to workout with me.

One big problem...Sleep....

Okay two big problems...Braelyn & sleep.

Neal loves to sleep in. He hits that alarm clock 3 or 4 times before getting up. So he sleeps in, makes a quick shake in the morning and works out after work.  Some mornings, I love to sleep in too.  Those mornings, I'll say it's normally because I was up with Braelyn, or I am honestly feeling like poo <like earlier this week when my sinuses were full and my head was in a fog>.  So

I, on the other hand, love to get up early.  Well I don't love it, I'm just at my most productive in the morning.  I like to get out of bed, do a little self talk (yes, I tell myself happy affirmations) and then get a workout in.  I really don't like waiting until the early evenings because that's just so far away and I need the energy so I can care for Braelyn.

So we workout at two different times of the day.  Me in the morning, Neal after he's home from work.

I want Neal to be a morning workout person.  Get it done before the baby wakes up and then get on with the day.

But I get it, I don't have to drive anywhere or be attentive by a certain time, well except when Braelyn wakes up, then I need to be attentive whether that's 4am or 7am. Ha!

However, I think if on the weekends, we could make our workouts jive together, that would be awesome on my book!  And even if we aren't physically working out together during the work week, it's still SUPER nice to know that we each are getting our endorphin's lifted from a good workout.  Seriously sometimes Neal is crazy hyper after his workouts...like crazy, bounce off wall, making Brae into an airplane and flying her around the house, teasing me because by this point I'm so ready for night nights and hitting the couch!

But anyways, here's some of what I've found about working out together.  Some of it is personal experience (I used to hit the gym with Neal ALL the time before we had Braelyn) and some of it is what I read about because I just want Neal to be on my side and workout WITH me more...maybe even ONE morning a work week - gasp! ;)

1.  Exercise induces the symptoms of physiological arousal - bow chica wow wow
2. We 'mimic' eachother's moves or pace, which then creates a bond, this nonverbal form of communication pulls at our emotions which makes that bond
3. I personally always feel happier with Neal after a workout we've done together, whereas honestly sometimes if I'm working out and he's sleeping...I'm resentful because I think, man I'd like to sleep but then I'd never workout.
4. He makes me workout harder. A partner will push you to do another rep, or go up in weight. You'll try to 'show off' sometimes though - so there's that boundary
5. Okay Neal, if those don't get you....there's LOTS of studies that show working out together brings more sex into the relationship - BOOM! Nailed it!

...or maybe he doesn't want to workout with me so we don't make another one like below when I was preggers and worked out with him all the time....hmmm

What else can I add to my list to convince the hubs to workout with me (in the morning!) :)

Losing the Emotional Weight

I tried this dress on today to see whether I need to keep it or get rid of it, and WOW I honestly did not know my body has changed that much.

The picture on the left was from freshman year in college, 5 years ago.  The photos on the right are from today.

I've come really far since this dress was rocked in the picture on the left.  That girl 

> was depressed

> was abusing her body with food and alcohol

> wasn't in control of her life

> wasn't owning her happiness

The girl on the right, the one you see today is

✔ Confident

✔ No longer abusing her body by binge eating or consuming more alcohol than needed

✔ Knows how to control her life

✔ Has truly found happiness and WANTS TO SHARE IT!

Between freshman and sophomore year of college, I decided it was time to change.  It was time to stop over eating, to stop drinking only sweet tea and instead start drinking water, and to start exercising.  Being conscious of my nutrition and fitness was something I never had to think about before, because I had always been involved in sports.  The coaches always told us what to do.

I took my health into my own hands, doing at home fitness.  While I lost the weight, and toned up some, I didn't lose that emotional baggage.  That, has taken me years, and honestly, is still a work in progress.  I can truly say, I have found what helps me.  I am doing personal development, listening to motivational speakers, taking action, writing goals, climbing over myself when I get knocked down, and I am so much happier than I have been in years.

I'm truly thankful for the life I have found and for the people it has brought into my life.

I hope if you are facing anything that is tearing you down, that you too start seeking out what it is that's holding you back from making a change, that you take action, and that you truly believe in yourself, in God's plan for you, and start living the type of life that brings joy to not only you, but to those around you.

A Summary of Time

Life has been happening.

Life has been amazing.

Braelyn has been growing.

Mom has battled depression, beat it, and is coming back with vengeance. 

Postpartum depression is no joke.

Postpartum hormones are no joke.

Being unsatisfied with your job is no joke.

Crying daily is no joke.

Throwing fits of anger towards those who care the most, that is no joke.

Literally throwing things, is no joke.

Accepting love is no joke.

Healing from diastasi recti is no joke.

Nursing, the most selfless thing I have done, is no joke.

Trying something new is scary, and again, no joke.

Being told to do personal development, and being so angry that you say you don't need it, is no joke.

Submitting yourself to God, is not joke.

Making new friends is no joke.

Realizing that some of these closest friends, you actually haven't met in person, but communicate with daily, is no joke.

Doing personal development and it truly impacting your life, is no joke.

Being happy, consistently, every day as a choice, is no joke.

Truly believing in yourself and in what you deserve, is no joke.

Forgiving yourself, is no joke.

All of these things and more have happened over the past year. This has been the most challenging and most rewarding year of my entire life.  Our marriage has grown.  My maturity has grown.  My leadership has grown.  My self control has grown.  My happiness has grown.  

Is every day amazing with rainbows and butterflies? Absolutely not.  Do I find something in every day that makes me happy, something to be grateful for?  Absolutely.

I've been growing, I've been learning, I've been struggling, and I'm coming back.  I want to share more of my story.  I want to help others struggling by sharing parts of me.  I am back.

Braelyn's 10 Months Old!

Braelyn Updates
How Old:  10 Months
Medical Updates:  Weight: Height:
Sleep: She likes her sleep for the most part,  but we still had a handful of days this past month that she barely napped. She typically wakes around 6:30 for the day with a nap around 9 and another at 1. Each nap (on a good day) is 1 + hour. I do have her stay in her room for the first full hour because sometimes she wakes around 30 minutes,  makes a little fuss, and then falls back asleep for another hour.
Clothing/Diapers:  She's wearing 9 or 12 month clothed. We are still using cloth diapers.  We've moved onto a larger prefold that I fold and pin. This is helping to prevent leaks.
Milestones:  She pulls up to standing all the time.  She doesn't even need both hands! She also ssys Dada, sometimes Mama, abd waves with a grin if you ask her to day hi :)  She eats lots of different foods...I swear she eats better than I do.  She eats oatmeal, quinoa, rice, avocado, sweet potato, golden potatoes, butternut squash, broccoli, peas, green beans, zucchini, carrots, blueberries, apricots, banana, pears, peaches, plain organic yogurt, grapes, oranges, organic plain cheerios, and ground turkey.  She pretty much self feeds now.  I really like this because it allows her to learn how to pick small pieces of food up, chew, and heck I can be in the kitchen getting my food ready while she's next to me feeding herself.  She also has 6 teeth, 2 on top and 4 on bottom.  I also think she may have another coming in on top.

Mommy Updates
Postpartum: 10 Months
Weight: Under pre-pregnancy, but I'm working on getting muscle back, nutrition up, and some weight gained.
Waist/belly: With my diastasis recti under control and healed, I am now working on toning the stomach. I've not had defined abs since like middle school. I can have a flat stomach, or one with a little 'pop' if I have juat eaten. This has been what my stomach is like for so long,  I don't know if I'll get super defined abs (Neal doesn't like a 6 pack on women anyway - few!) I do notice that after toys last workout program I did for the past 3 weeks, I have a bit of that lower cut, which is cool!
Best moments as a new mom:  Her tickle giggles!  I just love them!  And she always laughs at me if I'm working out and jumping or making exasperated noises - those anyone might find funny!
Hardest moments as a new mom:  Working from home and having her with me all day makes it hard to sometimes feel like I'm doing a good enough job at either being a mom or building my business.  I've gotten better about scheduling my time during her naps to focus on either Lively Happenings or Coaching, but sometimes it's hard to get all the work I'd like done if her naps are short or if I just have a lot of LH orders. I now just need to be content with what I can do and put the rest to bed for the day, coming back to it the next day.

And of course, some more photos!

She stands ALL the time now :)

These were from our trip to the Zoo at the Splash Pad and the Sea Lion Show just sipping her water :)

 Yes, she always wants to feed herself now...her favorite is banana...do not attempt to take away a banana.

She's just trying to help me with some Lively Happenings orders :)

Braelyn attended Natalie's rehearsal dinner!

First Father's Day! 

The girls of this family! 

Her look during stroller rides...priceless! 

Making a mess with her toys of course. 

 Enjoying the geese and the pond nearby the house!

Father's Day 2015

I wracked my brain over and over about what to do for my husband this year for Father's Day.  And then I thought, okay now I have WAY too many options, so I'd like to share :)

Here's 4 options for you - and you have time for ALL of these before Father's Day, Sunday June 21st! 

1. DIY Projects you can do LAST MINUTE! 
   Yes, completely last minute projects for all of us that are busy just trying to get through the day and then suddenly realize…oops I need a gift!  Here’s a few to inspire you!
   From a photo mug to personalized hand and foot prints. 
   *Remember, when you are doing hand or feet prints, tickle the back sides of the baby’s hand or foot to get them to open them up for you!
   Check out these DIY Gifts here
   
2. Some favorites from sellers on Etsy
   I believe all of these shops are stocked and ready for YOU to get a gift for your dad or husband in time for Father’s Day!
   One of my favorites from these sellers is“This is what an awesome DAD looks like tee”.  Even more fun… the Train Play Mat T-Shirt.  Want something a little different? What about a wooden watch or some delicious popcorn seasonings?  Or get him a beard grooming kit (I’m a sucker for my husband when he has a nice soft beard…I know you may want your man freshly shaved – no judgment!)
   Enjoy my list here!
   
   
   
3. Or get them something customized from me!
   I hand stamp guitar picks (which can be used or turned into a keychain), money clips, fishing lures, and collar stays.
   I’m just asking all orders be in by Wednesday, June 10^th so I have time to make your man something uniquely special from your heart! Check out the options by clicking HERE

4. Lastly, for a SUPER cool gift that comes Man Crates.  They come packed up with no extra fluff.  It is an awesome box with great products and a crowbar to open it...how cool is that!?

I hope you enjoyed this collaboration! I can’t wait to see what you do for your dad or husband this Father’s Day!  Tag me @LivelyHappenings to let me know!  I may have to snatch up your ideas as well!

9 Months Old Baby Braelyn's 3/4 of a Year!

Braelyn Updates
How Old:  9 Months

Medical Updates:  She weighs about 17.4 lbs and I don't have her height because I keep forgetting to take it...doy! (was 16.8 at 8 months & 28 inches at 8 months)

Sleep: Well this one has changed month by month.  When she was 7 months, in April, she was sleeping like a champ until we 'moved' to the apartment in Louisville.  She was then sleeping in a pack n play and had to re-adjust.  At 8 months, during the month of May, she was finally taking naps, except for a few days when she cut teeth.  She would take 45 min - 2 hour naps two times a day.  We've been on a semi-schedule where she wakes up and a little less than 2 hours later, is ready for a nap.  After that nap, it's about 3 hours later and she's ready for another nap.  Then between 5:30 - 6 we start going through 'night night' routine with a meal, bath, milk & cuddles.  She typically goes down around 7 and was staying asleep until just after midnight for some milk & cuddles and then getting up around 6/6:30.  VERY recently, she's pushed back to getting up around 2am and then closer to 7am.  Back in the early 7 month range though, she was sleeping THROUGH the night - like completely 6:30 PM - 7 am...it was awesome. *sigh*

Clothing/Diapers:  She's wearing her 9 month + clothes with an exception of a few 3-6 month pieces that are tops only  We are still using cloth diapers.  Instead of pinning them, around 8.5 months I was able to start tri-folding them.  We haven't moved into the next size up yet in the prefolds.  I am going to try to extend the life of these original ones for as long as I can I think.

Milestones:  Around month 7 she began to roll from her back to her stomach.  Then around 7.5 months, she was scooting.  Now at 9 months she's certainly crawling and even very recently began pulling herself up from sitting to standing.  She eats lots of different foods...I swear she eats better than I do.  She eats oatmeal, quinoa, avocado (doesn't love it but tolerates it), sweet potato, golden potatoes, butternut squash, broccoli, peas, green beans, zucchini, carrots, blueberries, apricots, banana, pears, peaches, and just the other day I introduced plain organic yogurt.  I am making all of her foods. I'm currently pureeing them, but she's gotten that pincer grasp going well and will grab foods if they drop on her tray.  She also has FOUR teeth, 1 on top and 3 on bottom.  I just saw the 3rd on bottom for the first time today, I had NO idea it was coming in!  I think I see another on bottom coming gin and possibly the other top one coming in!

Mommy Updates

Postpartum: 9 Months

Weight: Right around pre-pregnancy weight.

Waist/belly My diastasis recti is under control for what I need to feel comfortable working out.  I've learned how to engage my core.  I don't feel separation if I am engaging my core and still have about the same amount of separation I had at 6 month, 1 finger.  My coach told me that could possibly just be my norm, but I never tested it before pregnancy to know for certain.

Best moments as a new mom:  Her saying 'Dada' around 8.5 moths is pretty cool. I'm not sure how much she associates it with Neal at this time.  She's super talkative and will now interact more with myself and others, clapping and waving and just talking away!

Hardest moments as a new mom:  Moving with a baby is tough. So just being patient and realizing I will not be able to get all that I want done because I'm on her schedule is sometimes hard for me as I'm a go getter - I want it done now.  So learning to slow down and take everything in smaller steps is my challenge.

And here's some pictures from months 7 & 8!

Rolling Machine

Goofy Faces :)

 Helping Momma Work on Lively Happenings orders!

Our little fashinista!  I love this hat (from Target) Leggings are from Baby Leggings and Sunglasses from Potter Barn Kids.

Meeting our friends Emily, David and Josephine!!!

Hanging out with Grandma Kim and our friend Dane! Yes, she wanted his beer bottle!

 This is her expression seeing animals at the zoo on my 27th birthday...she's not impressed. Ha!

Family at the zoo!!!

Grandmother's gifts for Mother's Day made at Louisville Diaper Fairy Cottage!

Us on Mother's Day!  I'm seriously so lucky!!!

She helped us unpack the house in Louisville ;) 

I LOVE BRAELYN!!!!

Braelyn's 6 Month's Old - HALF A YEAR!

I can hardly believe Braelyn turned 1/2 a year old yesterday!  It's so crazy to me to see her grow day by day and look back from when she was an itty bitty newborn...oh how I miss it, but am loving the growth!

Braelyn Updates
How Old:  6 Months

Medical Updates:  She weighs about 14.8 lbs when they weighed her at daycare 2 weeks ago. She'll get weighed again this Friday at her 6 month checkup.

Sleep: She was a champ at night time sleeping for all but about 1 week this past month.  That 1 week, she was teething and it was just not easy.  I was miserable, and so was she. But alas, we got through it and each time I'm learning some more soothing techniques for her.  This past time, I used Punkin Butt oil on her along with the Hyland's Teething Tablets after reading some suggestions from a mom group I follow on Facebook.

Clothing/Diapers:  She's wearing her 6-9 months clothes for the most part with a handful of 3-6 month pieces.  She's still tall, but we'll find out how tall in comparison at her Dr. appointment this Friday.  I ordered the cloth diapers I was obessing over in her last month post and I just got an email saying they have shipped - YAY!  I can't wait!  We're still really loving cloth.  My father and his wife even commented about how it was so much easier than they thought it would be when they came in last month to help out with her while Neal was in Seattle for work training.

Milestones:  She's really getting ready to roll from her back to her stomach.  When she really wants something, she'll roll onto her side from her back.  If I'm holding her when she's on her belly, she can then lift up onto her knees and put her weight onto her arms.  She then rocks and moves her little knees a tiny bit...crawling around the corner!? She's really grabbing everything in sight.  She has a favorite toy, her lion, that she will grab if she has the option between a few toys.  She also likes to grab onto my water or coffee cup and put her mouth on the rim.  I bought her the next Avent Natural design cup sippy cup and have put water in it for her try when she's eating solids...oh yea...she's eating some solids!  About 1 week before she officially turned 6 months, I started feeding her (she was 5 day's over her due date, so really it's her 6 months gestational).  We started with baby rice cereal (didn't care for that), butternut squash (loves that), and now we're trying peas (she's okay with them, but not in love). 

Mommy Updates

Postpartum: 6 Months

Weight: Right around pre-pregnancy weight.

Waist/belly My diastasis recti is about 1 finger width apart.  I didn't work out much at all between 5-6 months postpartum due to sickness, then lack of sleep from Braelyn teething, but I did get in my Knocked Up Fitness Postpartum DVD's and have done some of the workouts and am really loving them because I do not have to think twice about if they are okay for my diastasis recti.  Erica is a great instructor. I highly recommend her DVD's prenatal and postpartum as she's great at reminding you to work your deep core muscles and pelvic floor - keeping you safe pre and post natal.

Best moments as a new mom:  Just seeing her grow and become more and more interactive. It's the best.

Hardest moments as a new mom:  Nap training. This has been so hard and sad.  We are trying to get her to nap in her crib rather than on mom and dad during the weekends.  During the weekdays, daycare is trying to get her to nap in her crib rather then in a bouncer or swing.  I know, I know, we should have started this MONTHS ago, but I LOVE TO HOLD HER.  I do notice a big difference in her attitude when she sleeps in her crib for naps vs sleeping on me or in a swing/bouncer.  She really is so much nicer, happier, and just content. 

And for me, harder than nap training is milk supply.  My supply goes down easily if I am sick or stressed - both of which happened a lot this last month.  Work is legit killing my supply. It's terrible. I've never had more work since being with the company. I even put Lively Happenings on Etsy on vacation because I just need time in the evenings to complete work that I can't get done before getting Braelyn from daycare.  It's just nuts.  I've never been more unhappy than I was last week because I was SO stressed about my milk supply going down, and that stress was coming from work stress and it was just an all out nightmare.  We survived, my supply is back up and I didn't go too much into my freezer stash of milk.  But gosh, it's just hard.  I really hate worrying about pumping and if I'm pumping enough and then crying each time I do because I'm not getting as much as she needs me to send to daycare. I even ate tons of oats, drank lots of mother's milk tea, and tried to de-stress, but I just couldn't de-stress.  Today's not much better, but I'm consciously trying to not let all of the tasks piling up on my plate overcome me as much as I allowed them to do last week.  My supply, thankfully has been amazing these last few days, so I'm hoping that will continue...now if only work could be amazing and not so hard :)

And some photos from the month of February where she went from 5 months to officially 6 months (HALF A YEAR!) on March 1st :)

She LOVES the bouncer! 

Such a cutie :)

 Practicing sitting up and playing with toys using our boppy

Taking as many selfies as I can with her while she still lets me :)

TRYING FOOD FOR THE FIRST TIME

  She loved butternut squash

She'd rather eat her bib than her rice cereal

Taking her 6 Month Photos: 

Daddy's Valentine's Day Gift

First time sledding...she hated it!

 And lastly, the cutest sleeping baby...we don't let her nap often in the rock n play anymore, but sometimes she just drifts off and I'm not moving her :)