Weigh In {15 weeks postpartum}

I just realized that I haven't weighed in since I've been back to work from maternity leave..yikes! I last left you weighing in 212.4 at 8 weeks postpartum. Today I weighed in at 210.4 at 15 weeks postpartum. Hmph.

40 weeks pregnant vs. 15 weeks postpartum

The good news? I feel great. I go to sleep at about 10pm every night and wake up at 4am every day. I know, that is crazy. I do it mostly for pumping purposes on the weekends. I also have to be able to get myself and the baby ready for the day to be able to get out the door by 6am to get to daycare and work on time by 7am. Whew!

I also get myself ready every day now. There for awhile my hair was in a ponytail and I was dressing pretty "sloppy" and just making it through the day. Granted, I was pregnant, but that is no excuse to "letting myself go." I do my makeup and hair every day now and pick out my outfit before I go to bed. My fashion sense isn't always the most awesome (another entry for another day), but I am starting to feel better about myself. And that's what matters most.

We are what we repeatedly do.

I will leave you with this sweetie, wishing you a happy & healthy weekend!

Follow me on instagram for random daily nothings, what I'm eating and of course my adorable Bradley bear: alliemarshall627

C25k {week 4}

Last week was supposed to be week 4 of the C25k, but with scheduling conflicts..didn't happen. Boo. I was really regretting going a week without running too, because it was hard to get back into the "running mind-set." But I got back out there to complete week 4 of the Couch to 5k
Week 4 consists of walk 5 min, run 3min, walk 90 seconds, run 3min for 20 minutes. Well..I'm not really following this week because I can run longer than 3 minutes now. Not to toot my own horn but...

Saturday: I ended up getting out of class 2 hours early, so I figured I'd stop by the park over by my house to get in a quick run before going back home to my sleepy baby and hubby. It.was.cold..probably 35 degrees and super windy. And I wasn't getting any signal on my phone for my pandora radio, so I just ended up listening to the FM radio on my phone. I lapped the park 3x for a total of 45 minutes..running and then stopping to walk when I felt like I needed to. I have no idea the distance. It wasn't too bad, but I was bored running by myself. You know how some people say how it clears their head? Um no. Not me. I was thinking about the dishes in the sink waiting for me when I got home.

Sunday: My dad came over at 10am and we headed over to the trail where we ran 2 weekends ago and started running right away because it was cold again! Less windy, but still chilly. I honestly think it went really well. I stopped to walk 7 times during the 3 miles, but I was okay with that because I was pushing myself and feeling better about running for longer periods of time. On our way to the trail we had seen a St. Patrick's Day race going on so that motivated me quite a bit! I was sure tired after Sunday's run though (see bottom picture) but I'm glad we were able to get out there to get our 3 miles in. 

I think I will be ready to run the whole 5k by race day, May 5th!

Weekend Wrap-up

I missed last weekend's wrap up! It must not have been very exciting...oh well. This weekend was fine. Jordan was off so it was nice to be together, all 3 of us!

My weekend started Friday night after work. I had been working really hard all week at work on a report that is still not finished.  But I headed over to a mexican restaurant to celebrate with some coworkers of a fellow coworker becoming cancer free! Yea Melissa! I ended up ordering a margarita..my first alcoholic beverage in over a year! Wow! I only drank half, but it was good!

Saturday morning when Jordan got off of work (3rd shift) I handed over the baby and headed to the university for my 1st Saturday morning class of the semester. It is a women's studies course on addiction and dependency- I know I am really going to enjoy the course. Class got out early so I headed for a quick run and then back home to my boys. We had a later lunch at Old Chicago- Jordan wanted to drink some beers for St. Patrick's day weekend of course. Then we did some grocery shopping at Target. We just relaxed the rest of the evening. Bradley went to sleep and Jordan and I watched the movie The Pianist. 

Sunday I woke up for my 3 mile run for my 5k training. Afterwards I did laundry and housework and wrote a paper for one of my classes. Luckily Jordan was off this weekend so I could knock that paper out quickly. Jordan's aunt and uncle were on our side of town so they stopped by to say hello; it is always nice to see them. Later that night my sister got into town from college on Spring Break so we headed over to my parent's house for dinner.

It was a good weekend- couldn't ask for more than spending time with my boys, no matter whatever we're doing!

What I've been eating..

I've been pretty proud of my eating lately. I can't remember the last time I've had fast food and I've been caffeine free for a week. We've been pretty strict on a meal plan which has helped out a ton. I've learned that failure to plan=food failure. Our evening schedule is so tight from coming home from work, getting things ready for the next day, caring for the baby, etc that if our meals aren't planned we are more likely to grab take out or something not as healthy.

 

Left to right: 

1. Ground turkey, brown rice, peppers

2. Turkey meatballs in spaghetti sauce and veggies

3. grilled chicken and brown rice

4. fajita grilled chicken, brown rice and a little cheese

Whew that's a lot of rice! I'm loving the Minute ready to serve brown rice they are so easy and quick to add to meat or veggies. About one a week I grill up 5-6 chicken breasts and cut into chunks to add to meals. Easy enough. I've also been buying the BirdsEye frozen veggies to add as well. There are always coupons and there's a great variety. 

 

Left to right:

1. Italian chicken (just grilled with italian seasonings), tuscan veggie medley (my fave) and mashed potatoes 

2. Weight Watcher's Sesame noodles and veggies

3. Wild rice and grilled chicken

4. Brown rice, chicken, salsa and a little bit of cheese

So, that Weight Watcher sesame noodles and veggies is my absolute favorite. I know it's processed, but it's not terrible for you. Hello..it's a weight watchers product. I add chicken to it to keep me fuller a little longer. This is one of my favorite weekly things to eat.

As you can see, we eat quick and easy and try to keep it healthy as possible. What are some of your go to convenient, but healthy recipes??

Bradley {three months}

Bradley,
I cannot believe you are three months old! This month has been particularly fun because you are growing, changing and learning new things every day. You amaze me in every way; every little smile or "coo" you give me and your dad warms my heart. 

This month we moved you to size 2 diapers. You are still wearing mostly 6 months clothing, but some 9 month onesies fit you. You are a big guy! I'm guessing you're weighing in at about 16 pounds. You are still eating about 4 oz every 2 hours and are still exclusively breast fed (from a bottle). 

I believe the transition into daycare went well this month. I think it was easier on you than mommy. But you are well taken care of, so we are grateful for that. Daddy loves picking you up from daycare every day; it's the highlight of his day. 

You still love your tummy time, but are not quite rolling over just yet. You are also reaching for your toys and bottle. We love that you are so aware of your surroundings and curious. You know mommy and daddy's voices and sometimes all it takes is us talking in your ear when you're fussy to calm you down. 

You experienced your first snow this month! It is going to be so much fun playing outside with you in the snow when you're older, but until then, we will just stay inside in our cozy home. We also took you on your first road trip to Manhattan, KS to visit your Aunt Sidney at college and stay in a hotel for the first time. You were an angel the whole trip! Being away from home didn't phase you at all. You are a very easy going baby and are happy as long as you have a dry diaper, food in your belly and are burped :)

Bradley bear, it is hard to believe we spent the last 3 years without you in our married life. You have truly completed us and made our house a home. It seems as though our lives are just filled with a deeper love for each other than we could have ever imagined. I make it a point to tell you every day that I love you, but I don't know if I can ever express exactly how much! You have made me slow down and enjoy the little things in life. The little things like taking a nap on the couch when there are 3 baskets of laundry to finish. I want to soak up every moment with you, because they are all so special to me. We love you so much, and are so proud to be your parents!

c25k {week3}

Alright! So I started back on week 3 after a week of snow, snow and more snow! Week 3 of C25k is: 5 minute brisk walk, 90 sec jog, 90 sec walk, 3 min jog, 3 min walk for 20 minutes. So I did that on Saturday on the treadmil. Ow- my shins were killing me, but I made it through just fine.
Sunday my dad came over at 10am and we headed out to run- my first "outside" 5k training session. I've been training on the treadmil the past 2 weeks. Now, my dad is what one would call a RUNNER. Meaning, he runs for FUN. excuse me?! But it's motivating.
We headed out to the Great Plains Nature Center. I didn't follow the C25k running plan 100% as my dad just suggested that I run as much as I could and stop when I needed to. I thought that seemed like a pretty good idea since I'd been feeling like weeks 1 and 2 were pretty easy.

There was some snow on the ground, but not a ton. ^^ this pic is kind of deceiving. On the spots on the trail with the most snow we walked..perfect time to take a picture. I kept picturing myself jogging and fall and breaking something in the snow!
Overall, I feel really good about the jog. My dad did too. I feel like we ran more than walked, which is a good sign. and guess what? NO shin pain. We will definitely be training outside again this weekend!
8 weeks until race day!

Weekend Wrap-Up

Ahh I'm late with the wrap-up. Better late than never?
We had a very nice family filled weekend. Jordan gets every other weekend off at the hospital so we like to enjoy every moment we can. It was pretty low-key, but that's exactly how I like it :)

Saturday morning when Jordan got off of work, we headed to brunch at a local diner..yum! We took an afternoon nap and geared up to start Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred. Yes I took 'before' pictures...NO, they weren't pretty :-/ I plan to post them once I complete the 30 days.

Sunday I woke up early to get ready to jog 3 miles with my dad..in the snow.

I will be doing a separate post on this run, so let's just say I'm surprised I actually enjoyed it! The rest of the afternoon was spent running errands to get ready for the upcoming week. We stopped for dinner at Pei Wei..aka my new fave restaurant. Yum! If you know me personally, you know I used to hate chinese food..I wouldn't even give it a chance. Now? I may need an intervention.

Sorry this is late, but life got in the way! Here is a list of posts I'm working on:
-What I've been eating
-The 30 Day Shred results (later this month)
-Clothing Motivation
-Crockpot freezer meals

and most importantly:

This sweet boy turned 3 months old :)