How I'm Thriving in Motherhood.

Yesterday was Mother's Day, I had a beautiful day celebrating with my family. I hope that you all had a beautiful celebrating the women in your life. 

One of the areas I wanted to Thrive in this year is motherhood. Most of 2013, I felt like I was in a fog when it came to mothering. I was learning how to be a mom of two, juggling a preschooler and an infant was no easy task for me. 

For far to many days I was lazy, we stayed in our pjs way to much, and I didn't feel like I was accomplishing very much in my days with them. I was just barely surviving during a really trying season. 

When I thought about what I wanted the next year to be like God put the word Thrive on my heart. I knew he wanted me to thrive in all areas of my life, but motherhood was very close to my heart because of the season that I'd just come out of. This next year, I wanted to enjoy mothering more. Take more risks, pour myself into other moms, enjoy being a wife and mom again in a way I hadn't in the last year. 

God has been teaching me a lot about his grace during times like this. Teaching me a lot about the importance of rest and self-care that we mamas so easily forget to do ourselves. 

I wanted to share with you some practical things that I am doing to Thrive in motherhood. To take care of myself and my family. I first want to say that I don't do it all. I say no to a lot of things, and over the years have really learned my limits and giftings in this area. I try to prioritize everything around my faith and family. So when I'm asked to do something before committing to anything I really run it through the list of priorities based on those two things. My family always comes first before I say "yes" to something. I look at our schedule of what we already have going on, I take that into consideration a lot. My husband and I talk about the week ahead, we don't like to be busy everyday of the week or weekend so we also take that into consideration.

A few things I'm doing to thrive in motherhood this year;

1. Making time for myself.

I know this is really hard for a lot of people, for me too. But I realized last year that when I didn't make time for myself and take care of myself that I wasn't very happy with myself and lacked confidence in myself as well. A lot of people ask me how I make time for working out, and my answer has just always been you have to just make the time. You have to make yourself important, carve out the time and do it. Maybe your thing is reading and you want to carve out time, do it. I've learned making time for myself has been vital in helping me to thrive in how I then mother. 

2. Keeping Sundays free.

Keeping the Sabbath and committing to rest on Sundays has been key for me. We don't schedule anything on Sunday. We go to church, we come home, often times we're lazy and that's the way we like it. Casual, no plans and a time for rest. There's a lot of play time and family time involved on Sundays and it's been so good for this mama's heart. 

3. Date Nights.

My husband and I haven't always been great at this, however this year we've really tried to make an effort to make date nights a top priority. I've seen how they vastly improve our marriage and how we are together. Even if you can't get away, carve out special time together at night after the kids go to sleep. 

4. Spending time by myself. 

I've learned that sometimes I just need to get away by myself to recharge. Sometimes that looks like a Target run by myself, grabbing a Starbucks, or sometimes that means I steal an hour alone in my bedroom kid free. Either way time alone for myself to recharge has been really helpful and important. 

5. Play Dates. 

When I first started staying at home with both my kiddos I thought that I'd be hopping all around from play date to play date with friends. Well, things didn't quite happen like that and I felt really isolated a lot. I learned that I needed to get my kids out of the house, and let them play with others on a regular basis. I also realized that I needed that interaction as well. 

6. Time with Friends. 

Simply, I've been pursuing community and friendship in my life more than ever. At least once a month I've made it a point to hang out with girlfriends, get out of my house and my yoga pants and do something with friends. It's been amazing for me to see my friendships grow over the past few months simply just by me being willing to step out of my comfort zone and pursue intentional relationships. 

Thrive is so much more than a word to me this year. It's a goal for me. It's a motto for me. It's becoming a silent reminder to me when I make decisions I ask myself; "Will I thrive if I do this, if I see this, if I pursue that.?" 

I'm thankful for what the Lord is teaching me during this season of life. 

What are you learning about yourself during this current season of life that you are in?

When Motherhood is Messy.

I'm not talking about my house is a mess, my kids haven't had a bath in two days, or there's throw up on my shirt. Nope, not that kinda messy. 

I'm talking about long days, ones that are hard. Emotionally taxing and draining. Like I just wanna hide in the bathroom and pretend like I'm in there for it's intended purpose but really I'm just having a mommy time out! Yup, that really happens around these parts. 

Motherhood is messy sometimes, isn't it?!

When I first became a mother everything was so new and exciting. Every single stage. I really surprised my otherwise control freak self how NOT anxious I was as a first time mom. I really loved every new stage, I really didn't sweat the small stuff and took it all in. 

Becoming a mom the second time around and having two little ones, now that my friends through me over the edge. One that took me a long time to get out of that mess and find my groove. There are still days that I feel like I don't know what I am doing. Please tell me I'm not alone in that?!

But, on those days when my pre schooler isn't listening to me or my toddler (who I really think is still a baby) who is breaking everything he can touch I try to remember that God's grace is enough. Those are the days when I know a little time to myself is just what I need to get back on track. 

Some time for prayer.

Time for a long run by myself.

Maybe a trip to Target and just walk the aisles alone. (cheap therapy I say.)

Mothering is just this all day, non stop, someone yelling at you, someone melting down, kinda hands on job. It's also the most rewarding thing I've ever done. It's gives me so much joy and purpose knowing that I have these two amazing humans to look after, teach and raise. 

My son has started doing this thing where he just walks up to you and grabs your leg gives you a hug around your leg. He lingers for a bit before letting go and he's off again running around the house. It's the most tender and sweetest thing, and I love it. 

Or when my daughter shouts out randomly "I love you Mom." Those tiny moments leave the biggest impressions on my heart. They let me know that even though motherhood can be messy sometimes and you just wanna throw in the towel on a Monday and run and hide in my pantry and never come out (seriously) that I really am doing a good job, and they love me. 

As Moms we need that encouragement. We need that gentle tug to let us know everything is going to be ok. My heart for moms has grown so much over the last few years and lately God has been doing something in my heart. A pushing. I want God to raise up a community of strong and confident moms. Ones that know they can't do it alone and that they need Christ everyday to get through it. Moms that know having a community around her lifting her up and her encouraging others is beautiful and beneficial as well. Let's do it together. 

What's your messy motherhood story?

Do you have a community of moms around you that you share life with? 

My Fitness Journey: 1 Year!

Wow! I can hardly believe that a year has flown by already since I started my fitness journey and changed my life around to better my health. My own desire to change my life has spilled over into my husband and children. We're all eating better. My daughter loves to work out with me. And I've loved sharing this journey with them, and teaching them about why we need to live a healthy life and make the most of this one body that God has given us.

It's been a spiritual journey for me as much as a physical transformation. My perspective has changed so much since I first started in April 2013. You know what did it for me? I saw myself in pictures after Ava's birthday last year and I didn't like what I saw. I had a 3 month old baby, I was breast feeding too. I had already lost the baby weight that I gained with Zane by this point, from 190 to 158 pounds. I was still very over weight at 158 pounds on my 5'2'' frame. I knew things needed to changed. I knew I wanted to feel better about myself, I wanted to fit into clothing again and feel good about it. 

Before April 2013 on the left and on the right after the first 3 months (July 2013) of working and eating well consistently.

I wanted to rid my body of the sugar cravings I'd been having, I wanted to exercise more and learn to love it and enjoy it! I've never loved to exercise, it's never been a priority either. And I knew that needed to change. 

So I started. I started doing Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred everyday, from my living room. Sometimes with my kids screaming in the background. I remember how hard it was when I first started I could barely do the jumping jacks she wanted me to do. And I was cursing her the whole time. After 6 days, I thought maybe I can do this. It's getting easier. 

I also began to clean up my diet. I cut out all refined sugar, dairy and started to eat clean. I gave up a lot at first because I needed to. I just cut it out cold turkey. I started drinking massive amounts of water and gave up soda. I knew I needed to give up some time and retrain my taste buds. Can I tell you something? I don't even crave the same things any more. I don't even miss it.  

I did the 30 Day Shred for about the first 5 months and had great results with it in addition to my change in eating habits. In August 2013 I started running. I used the C25K app on my phone and started running. Three times a week and also still doing the 30 Day Shred on the other days I wasn't running. 

I kept pushing my body and trying new things. My body started changing. When I started this journey I wrote down some goals. At first all I wanted to do was fit in my size 8 jeans that had been sitting in my dresser for almost two years and I couldn't wear them, I wanted to wear them again and thought that was a good goal to attain. I wrote down some simple goals and now one year later I'm so excited that I've surpassed those initial goals I set for myself. 

The picture on the right is October 2013- back into a size 8. Today those pants are too big and I've surpassed my original size 8 goal!

I remember the day I slipped them on and couldn't believe that they fit. It was like a small miracle to me and a big thing. July 2013 I had finally been able to fit into my size 8 jeans down from my size 12s that I was wearing when I started this in April of that year. That motivated me to keep going and trying new things and pushing my body to do what God created it to do. 

I learned that God created my body to do amazing things. This machine that he created to be able to hike, run, walk all with ease. I decided that I have this one body and this one life and I needed to take care of it and honor God with my physical health and not waste it away and treat my body badly. This changed my mindset as well. It changed my outlook on myself and my confidence was boosted. 

One of the biggest high lights for me this year was running my first 5K with my husband. Something I never thought I'd do, I did it! 

On the left Before, on the right one year later. A work in progress but I'm so happy with the direction I'm taking.

I almost hesitated to share and talk about the numbers and results here publicly on the blog. But then I remembered how motivated I get when I see others results and how encouraging it is. I'm also very proud of what my hard work and discipline has done for my physical body.

Starting weight 190 pounds, current weight 124 pounds: 66 pounds lost

Starting size 12, current size 6

I've lost 4 inches and 1 cup size in my bust. 

I've also lost 10 overall inches. 

If you're on the fence about your own healthy journey I encourage you to JUST START! Start small, start somewhere! You'll never wake up and regret getting in that work out, never! I'm so thankful for the overall health journey I've taken this last year, it's made a huge impact on my life and my family's life as well. 

I love teaching my daughter healthy habits, I love that she likes to work out with me. My family is as much involved as I am in this journey. They have been supportive and encouraging and it's been a ripple effect on others around me. Let's do it together, encourage one another to reach our goals and live our best life. 

IF: TABLE

My friend told me about the IF: Gathering back in February. I sat in my guest room floor for hours watching the Live feed. In the dark with the lights dimmed, no one but me & Jesus. It was such an amazing time, and I really believe that the Lord spoke some clear things to me during that time. During that time they introduce something called IF: Table. 

Community has always been so important to me. In some seasons of live I've found community to come effortlessly to me, and in others it's been a real struggle to find community and connection with people. God has been teaching me over the last few years that I have to create the community I crave. 

In other words if I want community and a sense of being connected then I need to step out and make the effort to create that. It's been a challenge for me at times coupled with past hurts and being an introverted person by nature. 

So when the idea of IF: Table came up, inviting women into your home and sharing life around a table. 6 ladies, 4 questions, 2 hours. I thought to myself, that's so simple I can do that. 

I hosted my first IF:Table last night in my home. I invited some ladies from my church who I wanted to get to know better and share a more intimate time together. There's something so meaningful and special to me about opening your home and sharing life around a table. Building community and investing in each other. Jesus did this during the Last Supper. Life around the table, learning, teaching and investing himself in others. Creating community. 

It doesn't have to fancy. It can be simple. But what makes it special is when you are honest, vulnerable, real and intentional. That is where life happens. 

I want my home to always have an open door policy. I want people to walk in and feel comfortable, raid my fridge and know where everything is and make themselves at home. I want to use my home to bless others. 

It was such a special time together. A time of laughter, connection and most importantly building community. I'm excited to host these ladies again each month. I encourage you to do the same, reach out and build community. 

Isn't it better when we do life connected and together! 

if you'd like more info on IF:Table go here.

Race Day Reflections

This past weekend I ran my very first 5K! My husband and I did it together. I started running last Fall as part of my work out routine. I'm not a runner by any means, before I started running I hadn't run in years, I bet since high school.

But I was at a standstill with my workouts and I needed to push my body towards something different and try something new. So I took up trying to become a runner. At first it was really, really hard. Then it got easier. Then I took a break during Christmas vacation and came back to it. We signed up for a race and I took the plunge towards running a real actual race!

This weekend we ran that race. We ran the Grand Canyon University Pediatric Cancer Run 5K/10K. Before we started the race I was of coarse so nervous. When you stand fear in the face and wonder if you're going to conquer it or not. 

This year I told myself I was going to Thrive. Last year when I started working out I wrote down a bunch of fitness goals I wanted to achieve. Lose 10 pounds quickly turned into lose 20 pounds. Fit into size 8 jeans again turned into fitting into something even smaller. Then I wrote down run a race, not knowing when that would happen. 

I ran and ran with my husband right by my side cheering me on, and encouraging me to keep going. I kept going and going all the way to the finish line. We rounded the finish line and waves of emotion came. I've never in my life run a mile without wanting to stop or stopping. This time I ran the whole race, all of it. I kept going. 

It's amazing what God made our bodies to do, how he made them to work. What we can accomplish if we just keep going. This is such a physical lesson as it is a spiritual lesson for me. 

God wants us to keep going.

Turn to him for strength. 

I'm proud of myself and what I've allowed my body to accomplish. It's truly so amazing. 

What have you done lately that scares you, challenges you? What have you learned about yourself? Or what has the Lord been teaching you?