Bradley {nine months} (late)

Bradley,

You, my sweet son, turned 9 months old on 9/4/13! You are curious and want to know everything that is going on around you. There are many times that I just want to freeze time, but I love seeing your monthly growth and developments. You are growing up so very fast right before our eyes!

We went to your 9 month doctor appointment—no shots this time, yay! You weighed in at 20lbs, 10oz and 27’’ in length. You are wearing 12-18 month clothes, size 3 diapers and size 5 shoes. You look so grown up in your little boy shoes! When we put your 1^st pair of shoes on you, you cried. You didn’t realize you could still move around while you wear them! Now, you don’t mind them. They seem to provide a pretty good base for standing on our hard wood floors.

You are drinking about 25oz of expressed breast milk daily, but have started to take a bottle of formula at night before bedtime. Mommy just can’t keep up with your daily milk needs anymore! You are also getting the hang of drinking out of a sippy cup with a straw. You just love to eat and get so excited when we put you in your high chair and a bib around your neck! You are starting to want more and more “table foods” over eating baby food off a spoon. You have really great coordination when it comes to picking up food off of your tray and making it to your mouth. You still only have 2 teeth, but feel like a few more may be popping through any time now!

What stood out the most from this month are your social skills! I noticed when I took you to a birthday party how interactive you were with the other kids, no matter the age. You are not shy around other children and are just happy to play along! We took you to a local music class called “Music Together” and you were able to follow right along with what the other kids were doing. We think this is a great benefit of being in a daycare setting.

You are still standing, and cruising along any and everything. We are trying to break a bad habit standing in the bath tub! Bath time has been a struggle lately. No steps yet, but you can stand for a little while without holding on to anything. Any day now you are just going to be taking off and asking for the keys to borrow the keys to the car! Makes mommy sad!! You still “babble” a ton and say “da-da” and “ba-ba” mostly. When you’re upset you cry “ma-ma.” You like to shake your head “no” and bob your head to music. You are becoming more and more interactive with us; it’s been such a fun month!

 

Bradley Xavier, we love you so very, very much. You are such a sweet little boy and a joy to be around. We look forward to seeing you hit all your milestones and grow into your personality. Mommy and Daddy love you to the moon and back!

Weigh In

Not a happy weigh in. This is actually the highest number I've seen in awhile. Today I weighed in at 206.0, which is a gain of +2.6 from last week.  I could make a lot of excuses like...it's my time of the month, I'm gaining muscle from running (????? ha), water weight, 3 course dinner on Saturday night during date night..whatever. But what it comes down to, is I'm losing steam. Some days I feel really good about making the right food choices, getting a good run in, etc and other days I'm just "whatever." Clearly I was more "whatever" this week than on top of my game.

Then I saw this picture from the weekend....

Jordan and I on our date night Saturday before the Blake Shelton concert

 

Ouch. I can certainly tell my weight is creeping back up. And I don't feel good about that. I'm going to make this week really count. My 5k is on Sunday so I have 4 runs scheduled this week to ensure that I will be ready to run the whole 3.2 miles on Sunday. I'm going to really be on track on my eating too. I need to stay conscious of every choice I make when it comes to eating. I have been waaay too laid back.

Cheers to a great week!!

October goals

I haven’t done a monthly goal post…in probably forever, ha. I haven’t been the best at staying accountable lately, but I’m working on it. 

Here are my goals for October:

1.       Not stopping at the gas station in the mornings- UNLESS I desperately need gasoline.

2.       Run 3x a week

3.       ONE cheat meal a week

4.       Meal Plan every week

5.       Take lunch to work every working day

I’m going to be updating bi-weekly on how these goals are going, just so I don’t lose sight of them by the end of the month. What are your October goals??

Weigh In

This morning I weighed in at 203.4 which is a loss of -1.2 from last week. I'm actually surprised...I didn't have the best week, eating wise. I didn't really stick to our weekly meal plan and we ate out a few times. I did get in 2 runs this week, which were okay. I'm averaging about a 12 minute mile. I'm feeling OK with that. My next 5k is in 2 weeks.

We had a death in the family this week, which caused some emotional eating on my behalf. My beloved aunt lost her battle with cancer last Monday. Guys....I had ice cream three times last week. Yes, 3! One of those times I was crying and just shoveling it in. Not a good feeling! This week will be better...I really need to get my emotional eating in check.
Here are some of this week's eats (not pictured is all my ice cream ;))

Standard breakfast for me: Coffee, instant oatmeal and a banana

Sausage scramble..honestly wasn't too impressed. It was just sausage, sweet potatoes and onions roasted in the oven. It was edible, but bland...not my fave.

Low carb chicken stir-fry!! Yummmm!

 

I will be posting my meal plan later on this week :)

 

Bradley {eight months} (late)

Bradley,

Hey, sweet boy! You turned 8 months old on 8/4/13 and hit so many milestones! You are learning something new, it seems, every day. Daddy and I have even had moments where we look at eachother and say, “Did you know he could do that?!” You keep us on our toes, and always smiling. You are a very happy boy with the best smile around.

 

You finally got some teeth! A tooth popped through on the bottom, and within a day or so, another came up right next to it. For some reason, even with two little teeth in your mouth, it seemed to age you quite a bit! You are looking more and more like a little boy and less “baby.” You are wearing 12 month clothes, and size 3 diapers still. You are drinking about 30oz of expressed breast milk. You love to eat! You are eating baby food and some finger “softer” foods.  You have been very curious about mommy and daddy’s foods.

Sleeping has gone great, even with the transition into a new home. You’re still rocked to sleep every night and then placed in your crib. You usually fall asleep between 8:30-9pm and wake up at 8:30am on the weekends. You go to daycare at 6:30am on the week days.

 

We took a little family mini-vacation this month to Branson, MO with Mimi and your cousin Devin, and had a wonderful time! You were an awesome traveler. You were happy to be in your stroller, just looking around at everything. We really are lucky to have such an easy going, carefree baby! We feel like we can take you anywhere and you will be perfectly content as long as you have a dry diaper and food on hand.

A major milestone you hit this month is standing!! Standing! One night you were having a hard time falling asleep. Daddy and I were watching you on the baby monitor and noticed you were standing in your crib!! Ever since then you have been pulling yourself up to a standing position and anything; even our legs! You cruise along the couch and seem so sure of yourself. You give us that little confident smile like “I got this, Mom and Dad!”

 

Bradley bear, I can’t believe you’re already 8 months old. Slow down, time! We’re enjoying every minute, and we know you are too! Thank you for always keeping a smile on our faces and showing us true love and happiness. We love you so much baby bear!!

 

Weigh In + weekly meal plan

So I've decided to change my weigh ins to Mondays. First reason being that I work on Fridays and I can't blog from work. Secondly, I would weigh Friday, then splurge on the weekends. By posting on Mondays (my days off) that holds me accountable from the weekend.
So, yea. My weight. I've been fluctuating a good 5lbs since July. Today I weighed in at 204.6. Not my highest, but certainly not my lowest. Ugh. I'm really feeling the fluctuation too. Not meal planning, too much snacking, too much Dr.Pepper. All things I KNOW don't help in the weight loss department for me. I've really got to get on top of my weight loss journey..I feel like I've been in a stand still for too long now.

This photo was a real eye opener for me! I was walking and holding my son as he took his first pony ride! I look bigger than the horse!! Yikes.

 

So, another thing I'm going to be doing weekly is posting my meal plans. I try to stay pretty Paleo but I'm not always perfect. My husband and I also both work full time so we also need easy and convenient. Most recipes ar found on Pinterest (follow me: amarshall627) or just online. I will link to the original recipe:

 

Monday: low carb chicken stir fry

Tuesday: sausage scramble (I don't use mushrooms, add sweet potatoes)

Wednesday: chicken fajita, salsa and rice bowl

Thursday: Pulled pork stuffed sweet potatoes

Friday: Just regular grilled chicken on the gas grill

 

I use leftovers from every night for lunch the following day.

I think that's about it! I'm still trying to run 3x a week to gear up for my upcoming 5k! and just trying to take it hour by hour, day by day :)

Have a happy, healthy week!

 

 

Back at it

Well, I’m back in the running game. I have a hard time calling myself a “runner.” Yes, I’ve run some races and have improved with each time I get out there, but I picture a runner as a super athletic person. That’s not me. Heck, I don’t even really like running. I like the feeling of accomplishment, but the thought of getting off the couch to get out there is not appealing to me. But I’m going to do it. Why? Because I know I can, and it’s good for me. Plus, I like the whole “running community.” Cute neon shoes, talking about your PR’s and whatnot..it’s just a positive environment.

 

So I suckered my bestie into running the Prairie Fire 5k with me coming up on October 13^th. We haven’t run together since 2010! But we’re making a comeback. I feel like we’re pretty in synch with eachother and good, encouraging partners. My hairdresser taught me about the importance of a good partner. I envy her relationship with her running partner! They are running a marathon together next month as well!

Marlene and I @ Race for the Cure, 2010

 

My dad was a great partner as well. He was an awesome support when I got back into running in March when I was only 3 months postpartum. However, I slow him down. My dad can run laps around me, and I’m sure I discourage him when I have my “not as good runs.”  He is running a half marathon next month.

Me and my Dad at the Spring Prairie Fire 5k, 2013

 

Right now as far as training goes, we are trying to run 3x a week, just around our neighborhood. Now that Marlene and I live super close it is very convenient. The not so convenient part? Working full time with a baby. I’m tired in the evenings!! But we’re pushing ourselves and getting it done. We have 4 weekends until race day. Yikes.