Happy First Day of Spring

Happy First Day of Spring ya'll! Of course, in true Kentucky weather fashion we are under a Winter Weather Advisory with up to 5 inches of snow possible! WTF! We have had several days where we have had a tease of spring temps! I am so ready for warm sunny days!

Mere had her 2nd trimester awards ceremony. She has continued to work so hard this year. If you have been reading here long enough you know Meredith has dyslexia. She was diagnosed last year. All her dedication has started to pay off. She was awarded the Best Effort Award for her class and Second Honors. Nick and I are so incredibly proud of her.

The annual Father/Daughter dance was a couple weeks ago. I can't believe how big my girl is and that she will be 10 May 1st. Where in the h e double l has time gone? I just ordered her birthday party invites this week. We decided to do cake and cookies following one of her soccer games. With soccer almost every weekend in the spring on top of our work schedules it is harder to find a birthday party date. This way we thought family could come cheer her on at her game and then celebrate after! She wants to plan a friend party so that is in the works for June.

I had some free time to myself a couple weeks ago so while out running errands I decided to stop in Old Navy and try on a few things for Spring. Spring fever has been in full effect since Christmas ended lol. I found the cutest cardigan.....in the kids section! Since I am on the short side I was able to make one of the larger sizes work and it is the perfect length and fit. The sweater doesn't overwhelm my petite self! I am obsessed with all things floral and found the cutest shorts to also come home with me. I also spotted a gorgeous yellow dress but wasn't sold on the color with my skin tone. I think with a tan I could see it working.

sweater

 floral shorts



dress

Carb cycling is going great this month. Each week has been a different challenge to complete. I have to say I am rocking the squat challenge !! It is making me drink more water which I struggle to do. At the end of this cycle I will be sure to do a full update.

Is everyone's brackets busted? I do not fill out brackets. I would only pick my Cats to win so why fill it out haha! I am excited for tipoff Thursday. Gonna be a late one! I snapped a picture of little Max the other night asleep dreaming of a final four appearance!!

The kiddos Spring Break is coming up. We are planning a staycation for the first few days and then 2 days in Lexington. I just booked a night at the Hyatt. They are so excited to swim. I can't wait too. This is the first year that Mere has been in school that I took off the whole week!!



Bathroom update

Well, someone has chickened out of selling our house. I won’t name names but it wasn’t me lol. I was ready!!  I spent a few days being upset about the change in plans but it was time to let it go and move on. What is the best way to do that? Why giving your current rooms a little update. So little by little our home on Yale Ave is going to get a fresh new look! We already updated our  living room with some paint. I need to do a gallery wall and add a coffee table. All easy enough. I have a long list for the ole hubby though. Next was our downstairs guest bathroom. Nick painted it a light blue and added some white trim . Then we hung some shelves (we purchased shelves and brackets at home depot. he then stained the shelves and cut them down to fit in our space), added some decor (including my favorite Charleston prints ) and voile ! It was an easy and inexpensive way to breathe new life into the little bathroom!! I love having a handy hubby who can do little projects like this!!

Carb cycling + Protein Balls

Ya’ll why is trying to eat healthy and lose a few pounds so freaking hard?  If you remember last spring I embarked on a journey to get healthy again. Losing my “baby weight” from Max was damn  near impossible. I tried anything and everything and nothing really worked. I don’t know if it was my “older “ age but I was so frustrated and down. When you are petite every little pound shows! Plus my dad was a very bad diabetic (heart attack in his 40’s, leg amputation in 50’s, legally blind in 50’s, stroke and gone from us by 56). Diabetes is terrible! Not only on my dad but for the whole family. I was 16 , sister 14, and brother 7 when my dad had his FIRST heart attack. Guys it is something that never leaves you. I remember that day like it was yesterday and not 22 years ago . The point to this story is I want to do everything in my power to be the healthiest person I can be for my kiddos and husband. My goal isn’t to be skinny (that was my obsession in my teens and 20’s) . I won’t lie though do I want to drop 20 lbs and be at my “ideal” weight? Hell yes ! But being super skinny isn't cute at my age. It makes you look haggard! Who wants to look older than ya already are lol. Not me!! Being healthy and not being a size 2 (because let’s face it I would be sooo skinny but it would not be a good look on me!!) is not my goal. Nor is it what I want to teach my daughter . I am thankful that her favorite foods are healthy ones! But that’s all her! I don’t want to push too strongly at such a young age . Plus she is super active. Now that I am off track lol. Let's get back to carb cycling. You can read more about carb cycling Here. I love love my Facebook group that is on this journey with me! Our coach, Stacey, is amazing! Every day she posts a live video , inspiration , recipes, and more. I thrive on the encouragement and bible verses she provides and the other group members as well.  I took a several month break from doing it and was so excited to start back last week. I gained about 5 pounds back from what I lost last year. Part of this journey is learning to give yourself grace. I struggle with this so much. I can beat myself down with negative thoughts til I want to break. The sisterhood of this group who is there to cheer you on when you have a great day or a crappy day is awesome!! If you are interested in learning more about carb cycling feel free to message me and I can send you Stacey’s way.

This past weekend I made some protein balls!! Omg! They are soooo good! One of the girls in our group posted a recipe for protein balls. The hardest part

about making these are wanting to eat the whole batch lol. These are perfect for “feast days”! Also, my kids love them and bonus they are peanut free. We have a hard time finding protein bars that Mere can eat because of her peanut allergy. 

Protein Balls

1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup almond butter (I substituted sunbutter due to Mere’s nut allergy)
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/3 cup raw honey
1/4 cup ground flax seed

To make just combine all your ingredients into a large mixing bowl. 

Roll out teaspoon sized balls on baking sheet (mine were bigger lol). Freeze balls until set (about an hour). Enjoy and keep leftovers in ziplock baggie in fridge or freezer!!

NYC Day 3 Recap

Ya'll day 3 was hands down my favorite day of our trip! The day was truly magical with a winter wonderland we got to experience.  I was so bummed it was our last day and was bound and determined to make the best day !


Staten Island Ferry
We headed into the Big Apple by train and caught the Staten Island Ferry.  The 5 mile, 25 minute ride also provides a majestic view of New York Harbor and the Statue of Liberty for FREE!!! This was our main reason for taking the ferry. We wanted the kids to see the Lady Liberty. But with it so cold out we loved that the ferry provided a heated inside area where we could also rest our feet! (so much walking !!) We caught the ferry at the perfect time too. We had gorgeous views of the harbor and Statue on the way to Staten Island. The Staten Island Terminal features a wide range of shops and restaurants, and an outdoor plaza. We were able to grab lunch here before taking the ferry back to Manhattan. It had started snowing and our return trip (and did not stop the entire day) you could not see a thing in the distance! Once back on the mainland we walked around the Battery and grabbed Starbucks to warm up!

Exploring the Financial District

From Battery Park we explored Manhattan and the Financial District. There are so many spots of interest to see including the NY Stock Exchange and Federal Reserve Bank. Lower Manhattan we were able to see City Hall, the Chamber of Commerce Building as well as Federal Hall all the while the kids played in the snow! One of my favorite things to do anywhere we go is just walking up and down the streets and immersing myself into the surroundings.

Little Italy and Chinatown

We made our way from the Financial District to Little Italy and Chinatown. By this time it was getting later. The time was flying by it seemed like. It always does on the last day! Had we been early I would have loved to grab a "snack" in Chinatown. As we walked through Little Italy Nick picked out a place we were going to eat dinner. OMG it was amazing! Probably the best dinner we have ever had and to think he just randomly picked it! Since it was to celebrate my birthday too we splurged a little bit more than we would normally do on food. Plus we were in New York City so why the hell not!!

Rockefeller Center

After dinner we had to see Rockefeller Center one more time. The Christmas tree is freaking amazing at night. Add the snow that was falling and it was picturesque. We took in all the sights and sounds trying to soak in all the memories. Oh and did a little shopping. I spotted a scarf at Top Shop that I had to have. But I waited til the last day to make sure I still had some birthday and Christmas money left haha. We were all sad to see the trip come to an end but it was late and kids were exhausted from all the walking we did

.


The next morning we were up bright and early to catch our flight home. We landed back in the Bluegrass State in time to catch my Cats tip off. While we waited to board our flight I created a Kroger's clicklist to pick up for that evening since we were coming home to an empty fridge and pantry(best invention ever!!). I am so thankful that we were able to take our kids on this trip. All the extra 3rd shifts and sleepless days to be able to provide all the memories we so worth it. I was worried that since this was their main Christmas present they might miss all the extra gifts from us and Santa that would have been under the tree that they would be upset Christmas morning! But I should not have worried. No one missed anything (plus they still got a few things) because we were still on an NYC high. We all can't wait to go back!

Until next time NYC!!


Check out my other posts for our trip:
day 1
day 2
NYC Travel Guide