I Don't Want To Grow Up!

On Saturday, we decided to take Hunter to Toys R' Us.

We discovered that Hunter is a bit frightened by dinosaurs and gorillas.





He likes riding on bikes.







He threw a tantrum when we took him out of the wagon. Poor baby.

Time For a New Goal

Blair posted today about not using the scale to measure success and finding a new measure. This is the idea I needed this morning. I hit the 150’s this weekend…. Well kinda, more like 159.6, but still considered the 150’s, right?! You gotta take what you can get!

I’m not really too concerned about the number on the scale anymore. Being 6 feet tall, yes, legally almost a giant, I’m pretty content with the number on the scale. Yet, not so content with the jiggly on my thighs. So, my new goal is to drop a pant size by the time Seattle gets warmer weather! I’m going to need new dress capris for work this summer, and they darn well better be a size smaller than the pants I bought last month.

Running and Crossfit have really changed my body. I have seen very little weight loss, but my pants are starting to hang off my body! Changing my diet over a year ago got me to lose quite a bit of weight, mostly on the top half, but working out is really giving my body the needed weight loss on my bottom half.

So, I am giving myself until May 1st to be able to buy a size smaller.

P.S. Let’s talk about setbacks real fast. Why in the heck have I been wanting to eat cheese pizza for dinner every day in the last week?!?! Cheese pizza is going to be the death of my goal if I don’t control it soon!

Hey There, Chocolate Face!

This is what I said to Hunter when I saw the mess he made eating a piece of S'more pizza. Jesse turned around and looked at me with wide eyes. "What??" "Do you know how racist you sound?!" "Ohhhhh, a Borat term, whoops!"

Warrior Dash

So, I stepped up to a challenge, and signed up for the Warrior Dash that is taking place in North Bend, Washington on July 17th! I’m both excited and nervous for the event. It’s a 3.5 mile run that is filled with 10 obstacles along the way, including a run through a swamp, jumping over fire, and then finished with diving under barbed wire through mud!

Check it out:



I signed up for the 10:30am race time on Sunday. I still have quite a bit of training to do to complete the run, but I’m up for the challenge! I just finished Week 3 of the C25K and am feeling good entering into Week 4. Almost halfway there! I’m still going strong with Crossfit, too. I’ve been going 3 days each week and then doing the C25K on 3 other days in the week.

I’m hoping this will be me:



Uh huh. :)

My Little Brother is Getting Married... Like Soon!

On Saturday, my future sister in law, had her bridal shower. Jennifer is such a wonderful woman and I cannot wait to have her as another sister! She has such a wonderful heart and a playful spirit. It was so fun to spend the afternoon showering her with love and gifts.

Spring and Summer is Coming!

I've always been one to look forward to new seasons, I love them all, but am always ready for a new one to come on through! Ever since Hunter was born, one of my favorite things that goes along with the change of season is.... a change of wardrobe for our little man.

Those who know me, know that I am a little weird about Hunter's clothes. Certain shirts go with certain pants, which goes with certain socks, and of course the shoes have to go well with the outfit as well! I never knew that dressing a little boy could be so fun. Sadly, I look forward to picking out what he is going to wear every morning! I am the first one to admit that I am weird and pathetic. You don't need to remind me that it's a waste because how fast they grow out of clothes or how dirty they get. I know all these things and I don't care.

But... Spring and Summer are on their way, so that means that I had to do a little shopping online this weekend. Janie and Jack are having a sale of 25% of your entire purchase with the code JJPLAY. Gap is also have a 30% of your total purchase with the code GAPSAVE.

So... I thought I'd share with you all what I ordered because obviously I think it's the cutest stuff of there right now! :)

Janie & Jack:













Gap:





Hunter has both pairs of these jeans in size 18-24 months, but I can tell they are going to be long enough much longer. So, I had to order some 2T's. Gap's Lil' Loose jeans are my very favorite jeans for Hunter. They always fit him just right and are comfortable enough to play in and nice enough looking to look stylin' in. :)





And.... for the biggest question. What type of shoes do you put on boys in the summer when they wear shorts? I hate the look of socks with shorts and I just feel like Hunter would be so uncomfortable wearing tennis shoes without socks. Any suggestions?

So, I ordered these from the Gap. What do you honestly think of these? I'm not in love with the shoes, but I think it's a good compromise of Hunter to run around and be comfortable without wearing socks. And the sandals... I love the look of them, but I'm worried that the strap between the toes might be uncomfortable. What do you think about that?





I kind of splurged this weekend on clothes for Hunter, but I figure I shouldn't have to buy him clothes for awhile, right?? Sure...

Take it to the Lord.

Between last weeks sermon about using our words as blessings to others and this week's chapter in my weekly devotional about God being so faithful and forgiving, the idea of taking everything to the Lord first, has come to me.

Our God is stronger than our family and friends. He can handle our negative and mean thoughts a 100% better than they can. God does not expect us to be perfect and I do think it's very normal to have angry and bitter feelings at times. I pray that I learn to take these thoughts to the Lord instead of lashing out at my husband, venting with a co-worker, or growing impatient with friends. God is not worn down by these things like our family and friends are.

If I can do this more often, I think my personal relationship with God will grow and also my relationship with others, especially my husband, will grow as well. It is silly, but when I go to God, it is usually to praise him or to ask for help when I have a need or someone else is hurting or going through a rough time. I rarely go to him because I am mad or frustrated with the daily things in life. I take it out on my husband or I vent to other people close to me. The words I speak to them at those times, are not blessings, they are negative and drag them down in the process.

Some of our thoughts are not meant to be said aloud. I am ashamed that I let one of these thoughts out of my mouth a couple weekends ago when having a disagreement with Jesse. It hurt him, it hurt me, and there was no good that came out of it. I should have taken it to the Lord, and only Him. God is strong enough to be my very best friend regardless how much I pour out to Him and how incredibly selfish and sinful my thoughts can be at times. He loves me anyways and will lead me in the right direction. He knows my heart and will not take offense or misunderstand my meaning or intentions.

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. James 1:5

Hunter & Mommy Date

Yesterday, Hunter and I had a lunch date, that was sandwich between a couple shopping dates. Whoops!

We went to church with a friend and then had about 4 hours to kill before a birthday party, so of course we decided to indulge in a little retail therapy. We went to Bellevue Square and wondered around.

I had a 20% off coupon from Gymboree and found that the whole store was already 30% off, so we scored this cute outfit for summer for half off!



And then we found the biggest steal of the year! A North Face Denali jacket that was regularly $79 for.... wait for it... $24! Here it is:



At the same store, we found Hunter some North Face Fleece pants that were regularly $25, on sale for $9/each. So we had to get both the black and blue ones.



So, we found some great steals! And to even it out to make it a "normal" deal sort of day, I had to go to Lululemon and get some new Groove crop pants and some Groove running shorts.





If you haven't splurged at Lulu, do it! It's pretty pricey, but well worth it. I rarely feel like wearing any of my other pants or tanks to the gym. Jesse got me some of their socks for Valentine's Day and now I am hooked to them, too!

Hunter and I worked up quite the appetite shopping, so we headed over to The Cheesecake Factory and enjoyed an awesome lunch and conversation. He's quite the intellectual! I felt a little silly going to a sit down restaurant with just Hunter, but it ended up being great. He was such a good boy... probably had something to do with the strawberry lemonade he was sucking down!

I Feed Good.

I feel really good. And that’s all that matters, right? The last couple weeks I have done an awesome job of working out 6 days a week.

Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings, I go to Rainier Crossfit. I love the variety of the workouts! Some days it is more focused on weight lifting, some on mobility, and some on running. I never know what I am going to expect until I walk into the gym and see what the Workout of the Day is (WOD). Sometimes that bothers me, but it keeps me from backing out of going because it looks too hard or it’s not what I feel like doing that day. You know all about those excuses, right??? Or is it just me?

On Tuesday, Thursday, and one weekend day, I have been keeping up with the C25K program. I love that, too! I just finished week 2 on Saturday and am feeling motivated to keep going. It seems like it is getting easier and easier with each run.

As far as weight loss, I am holding pretty steady at between 161-163lbs. I have gotten to a happy place where I feel good. I want to tone up more… maybe a lot more! But I really don’t care if I lose another 10 pounds in the process or stay the same. I looked up the healthy weight range for a 6 foot tall woman; yes I know I am a very tall woman. I wanted to get an idea of where I should be. To my surprise, the range was 140-184lbs!

Where's Hunter?

Hunter has found a new game. We try to keep the downstairs bathroom door closed so that Hunter doesn't get in there... but sometimes we forget. This morning I was trying to get ready for the day and turned around and Hunter was gone!

He wasn't in the kitchen or living room or hallway. So, I figured he must be in the bathroom. I popped my head in and nothing! So I turned around and said "Hunter, where are you?" That's when I heard a little giggle coming from the bathroom. He had climbed in the bathroom cabinet and closed the door. He thought this was a funny game!

So I walked in the bathroom and played along. "Where's Hunter???" Giggle. "Hunter, where did you go?" Another giggle. "I think I lost Hunter! Oh no!" Big giggles and then a hand peaked out.

I ran and got the camera and we played again.

17 Months

Hunter just reached the 17 month mark yesterday. Just like everyone else with kids, I wonder where the time went. I think back and realized that he’s almost been walking for half of his little life already! That just seems nuts to me!

The day was just like most days, but as I posted on my Facebook, I was determined to make it a great day, and I did accomplish that! I went to work for my normal 7am-4:30pm day and headed to my parents house. Jesse had a night flight, so Hunter and I decided to hang out with Grandpa Ed and Grandma Kim for a little while. My mom and I took Hunter over the Centennial Park in Snoqualmie so that I could start up Week 2, Day 1 of my Couch to 5k program. My mom ended up walking the loop with Hunter a few times while I ran. It was so relaxing and motivating to run after work. Hunter LOVES going for walks in his jogger stroller.

We then headed to the grocery store, grabbed some dinner and groceries, and headed back to my parents to eat dinner and make a breakfast casserole for the breakfast potluck that my work is having today. I need to post that recipe because it’s soooo good!
We got home by 8pm, I put Hunter to bed right away, and I think he fell asleep before I even left the room! And I have to admit, I fell asleep not too far into watching the Biggest Loser, we were tired!

What is Hunter up to at 17 months?

He is really talking a lot these days! The words he uses are: Mom, Daddy, Bo, Oscar, milk, ball, dog, car, apple, more, truck, snack, duck… hmmm, those are the ones that are coming to me, but there are probably more.

He’s wearing mostly 18-24 month clothes, size 4 diapers, weighs about 28lbs and last time I checked he was 34.5”. In the last week or so, he’s become much less picky about food and has even started to eat meat!!! That is unheard of for Hunter. Yay!

Bradley Lake Park

Yesterday we took a little family outing to the park. It was a little colder than we were expecting, but Hunter got to see some ducks. Of course, I went to take a picture with my camera and I forgot to put the media card back in. Boo! Atleast I got some pictures that were taken with Jesse's phone.

Ducks have become his new favorite thing. He plays with two duck decoys all the time saying "Duck!" and when asked what a duck says he responds with a quick "Duck, duck".