Posts

A different kind of To Do list

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I love making "to do" lists. There is nothing more satisfying than, one by one, crossing off the things that you've accomplished. Often, I'll even write down something that I've already done, just so that I can cross it off. Whatever, don't pretend you don't do it.  Recently, I've had some pretty extreme changes in my personal life that have reminded me of the importance of surrounding myself with kindness and positivity. That has reminded me how important that it is to try to be a positive force in the lives around me, too. I have subconsciously added some different items to my daily "to do" list.  Here are some things I try to do in my daily life:  Compliment a friend  Compliment a stranger  Show gratitude  Hold my tongue when what I might say is neither helpful or kind  Do something for somebody else without being asked  Smile at everyone I come into contact with  Ask somebody else about their day  Another big item on my "life" t...

Mommyhood

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It's been just under 27 days since I birthed a baby. Oliver is snuggled up on my chest in the Moby right now, allowing me to use both of my hands while he sleeps. We're getting the hang of this. Finally. After about a week and a half of creepy postpartum symptoms, and then the guilt over feeling them at all, Ollie and I are settling into a routine. Marc's mom is here right now, which has been comforting, especially because, for a little while, I was wondering if I would be able to do this on my own… a sort of new mommy panic. Having her here has been like knowing that there is a safety net, but I have been feeling lately like I CAN do this on my own. Sleeping is going okay some nights and not so okay other nights, but either way, I feel like I am getting enough sleep. Enough to function, enough not to break down into tears. Man, I miss my eight or nine hours in a row… now I would even be over the moon to get four or five solid hours in a row. Every morning, wh...

Oliver's birth story

It was long. I had definitely planned for an unmedicated, totally natural childbirth. That's what I wanted and I did a lot of research and reading. Birthing from Within was a great book. I also researched all the other options because I know that things can change and I wanted to be knowledgable about other options should they happen. From the Hips was a great book, too, fun to read and a lot of info from moms, too.  I ended up getting induced because baby was so big and just not coming out on his own. They put in a foley ball catheter the night before my induction to try to dilate me. I went in at noon the next day 5 centimeters dilated and no contractions. They broke my water right away. The baby had had his first bowl movement already, so that was in the water.  I still didn't start having contractions, so they hooked me up to a breast pump, because t hat can trigger contractions to start on their own. They kind of started, but not really, so we started pitocin...

Two posts, one day.

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Oops. I fell asleep before I blogged yesterday... and I almost did the same thing today! Part one: (Pretend this was posted yesterday). Last night we didn't get home until pretty late for a weeknight because I found out from my friend/coworker Shelaine that Dolvett Quince from The Biggest Loser was going to be doing a book signing not too far from where we live. We went down there after work, hung out with Shelaine, saw Dolvett speak and then waiting in line to get his new diet/lifestyle book signed. Hearing him talk and give advice to those in the crowd was super inspiring. Plus he is H-O-T. See? ADORABLE. And he was super sweet, too. Part 2: So, I was inspired and motivated and whatnot today. It was good. I've been eating healthier, but not as clean as I could/should be, and it's been a long while since I got a workout in. Today I ate really well (except the Starbucks I had as a special treat because it was the WORST DAY EVER at work) and I came home a...

It is NOT Christmas yet.

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I love Thanksgiving. We shouldn't forget about Thanksgiving in our rush to Santa and presents. I could type a lot more about this subject, but instead, I'll leave you with this, which sums up my feelings perfectly. I plan to be an old lady like this someday.

Operation Blair Waldorf's Closet

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It doesn't roll off the tongue very easily, sure, but it's accurate. You see, a few weeks ago, I was looking for something in my keepsake trunk (which didn't end up being in there, btw) and I left the trunk cracked. Yesterday, I was in my closet and decided to start looking through the trunk. I got all weepy and nostalgic finding letters that my dad wrote to me and my siblings while he was away from the family in the military, reading my old diaries, finding my (very Harry Potter-esque) first pair of glasses. It was so fun. I ended up pulling a bunch of stuff out and leaving it all over the bed (as I do). While in the middle of this, I decided that it was time to reorganize our bedroom closet. It's kind huge (compared to any of my other closets) and has a tendency to be a little bit of a black hole. It can get pretty messy in there. We went to Ikea tonight to get some boxes and bins and baskets and other goodies to help keep things in check, and I came across this...

Le weekend

We've established my adoration for the weekend. Today was no different. I had a chiropractor appointment this morning, where I got a referral for physical therapy. Ever since I got thrown off of a horse two years ago, I've had some residual neck and back pain, and (worse) some scar tissue over the hematoma that lived on my lower back for a while. Hopefully I (and my doctors) and help get it to go away!