We have some big news we want to share in a couple of days that prompted us to take the following pictures... I'm sure you can probably figure out what we're about to do... but either way, I'm saving that announcement for the official day that it happens. ; )

In the meantime, I thought it would be fun to share some pictures of what our house looks like now... minus some of our pictures that have been taken off the wall and mantel because they needed to go in some boxes. {I know, I know... I'm so good at keeping secrets. This upcoming announcement? Yea, you'll never figure out whats going on.}

We've been in this house about 4 years now and we've done a lot of updating. I'm really proud of all that we've done and as I look at these pictures I get all the feels thinking about the memories we've made and the life we've enjoyed here! The outside is a bit sparse right now because, well, its winter and grass and flowers don't really like to come out and play when its cold outside. So don't spend too much time on those pictures. Instead, feast your eyes on the kitchen, the nursery, and the family room and linger a bit there. I

Enjoy this little tour and a peak inside our home!

We eat way too much pasta in this house, but I can't help it. Its just that A.) its a meal that I can make with 99% confidence that it's going to come out tasting pretty yummy and B.) I just really love pasta.

These spinach lasagna roll ups are one of my favorite pasta meals to make, but its one that only makes it on our table once every couple of months. I always seem to forget about it! But it just makes it that much more yummy when I remember to make it. ; )

Reaghan and I have had a fun week doing Valentines Day crafts to share with family and friends and buying some special treats for the main man in our life to tell him how much we love him! Reaghan especially loved helping me pick up some goodies in the candy aisle at Target. I looked down and she had her own little stash of sweets in the bottom of the cart!

My older sister Erin is turning the big 3-0 next month so we wanted to do something fun and special to celebrate with her. She always loved Cinderella growing up and when she heard that Broadways Rodgers + Hammersteins Cinderella was coming to our area she really wanted to go!

We {my sisters, mom and I} decided to gather a group of her favorite ladies together to surprise her with tickets to the show and a nice dinner. We struggled at first to find a way to actually pull off the surprise part. We thought about just picking her up and taking her to dinner and having everyone there waiting, but it was a Broadway show so she'd have to get dressed up nice! Which meant, sure we could tell her to get dressed nice and be ready to be picked up, but sometimes {especially for Erin} part of the fun of going to something like this is getting to purchase a new outfit! We also thought it would be fun for all of us to ride together in a friends large 12 passenger van - my first idea was to get a limo, but I just couldn't afford it, so a 12 passenger homeschool van worked perfectly! And of course, anticipation of an event can be just as fun as being surprised, right? So we decided to let her in on the plans a week before the show!

I found this idea for a surprise box on Pinterest {where else?!} so mom, Mal, Sara and I put it all together for her one day. We found all of our supplies at Michael's Craft store - because they have 50% off coupons so we each buy something for 50% off ;). We had to be careful not to post any pictures on social media of our shopping outing because we didn't want to let Erin know we were out shopping and having a crafting day without her!

Here's how the box turned out:

Have you ever heard of The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman? It's a great book that provides insight in to how everyone feels love and tries to show love a little differently. It gives 5 general categories that you can fall in to and has a little quiz you can take to help you discover what your love language is.

We enjoyed a beautiful 70 degree day today. On February 3rd! It was amazing and felt like spring time. In fact, I think my garden thinks that it is spring time because all of my daffodil bulbs have sprouted and a couple of them have flowered. Its funny but also sad, because now I won't have any daffodils when its actually spring time.

We were up and moving early this morning to take Piper to the vet. It was my first time taking both Piper and Reaghan to the vet, I was a little apprehensive because Piper gets anxious at the vet and needs my full attention to make sure she behaves. So Reaghan and I got some more use out of our ergo carrier that we haven't used in a LONG time. Everything went great until we saw the vet...

Soooo....

 I got back on the Whole30 train after my cheat day the Sunday that ended my 3rd week.

And I stayed on it for 5 days.

And then I decided that I was done. We had a lot planned for this weekend including a baby shower lunch with my coworkers to celebrate a baby-to-be, a girls night shopping trip to cheer up my sis and a birthday party for Mark's little cousin who was our flower girl in our wedding. Could I have gone to all of those things and stayed compliant? Yea, probably. But I thought it over and in the end decided I was okay with being done just 4 days short of the goal.

I completed 26 days of the Whole30 and I lost 5 pounds throughout the process.

I'm sort of disappointed that I only lost 5 pounds. Granted, I had a cheat day, but for the other 25 days I was hardcore not eating sugar or any processed foods. AND working out 5 days a week. So yea, I was hoping to drop more than 5 pounds. Especially since most of that was lost the first week and was probably water/bloat weight. BUT weight loss wasn't the only goal (albeit a big one), it was really about restarting my eating habits to continue working towards a fit and healthy life and help me reach my goal of finishing the upcoming 1/2 Marathon with a new personal record.

Here's what I learned while Whole30ing it up in the Month of January...

Self denial is a good thing. We all have innate selfishness that makes us want what we want when we want it. Self denial is the cure. Or maybe more like a step in the right direction. Being aware of what you want, having the ability to have it, but still saying no is hard. But hard is not the same thing as bad.

Eating healthy is expensive - I spent $600 dollars in groceries alone this past month!!! YIKES! I did cut waaaaayyy back on our eating out expenses as I didn't have fast food at all (until my cheat day) and even going to a restaurant wasn't appealing since I knew I'd be restricted so we always opted to come home and make a meal. So while $600 was truly way too much for groceries, it was rewarding to know we were eating at home more.

Read labels - even things that say natural and organic can be total frauds. There are better options and sometimes they aren't even the more or most expensive options. You just have to watch out for those crazy ingredients.

I need more food education - having limited options made me want to take the time to find out what foods were considered healthy fats, what food would fuel my long runs and how much protein I should eat to stay full. Nutrition is an interesting thing and its amazing the way our body needs different types of foods for optimal energy and performance.

Planning ahead is crucial! You know those snack attack urges where you just want to grab some chips out of the pantry? Or those busy days where you've been running around so you just throw a frozen pizza in the oven for dinner? Not an option on the Whole30! I had to sit and plan out each meal for the week, thaw out the meat needed for dinner the night before and pre-package fruits and veggies for quick snacks during the day. I'm not the best at that, but I got better. Having something already planned cuts back on those urges to order take out on busy nights as well. Mark and I love Chinese food. ;)

I use food as comfort - as previously disclosed I did have a cheat day when the stress got overwhelming, but it was an eye opener. I craved something to make me feel happy and content. The other 25 days I had to find it in other things besides food like my husband, my sweet girl, journaling, and reading.

I eat as a habit - every time I walk in to the kitchen I want to grab something to eat, even if I'm not hungry! Just because it's there, doesn't mean I need to eat it. Especially at night before bed!

Trying new recipes is fun! Mark and I found this baked chicken thigh recipe that gets the skin deliciously crispy and the meat so moist. I definitely had a few fails, but failing is learning, yea?

Food affects your skin - I've been lamenting over the last year or so that the dark circles and bags under my eyes are worsening. I can get very upset about this if I'm in a particularly vain mood and I picture myself in ten years with sagging, drooping skin pockets under my eyeballs. But I actually noticed a big difference in the way they looked this month! I wasn't even thinking about the benefits my skin could see! I don't know if its the sugar or the dairy or what, but it definitely motivates me to be more conscious of what I'm eating.

Sugar is an addiction - on a spiritual note, I realized I am way too judge-mental towards those who can't break a serious addiction like smoking or alcohol. I struggled to give up sugar for 26 days - just SUGAR, and the day after I decided the fast was over, I had ice cream. Just like an addict who is sober for a few weeks but goes right back to whatever his vice is even though he was doing so well without it. This whole experience has changed the way I look at people that I see smoking. (I'm just using that as an example because I admit, I hate smelling the cigarette smoke). Whenever I go out for a run early in the morning, there is always a lady who sits out on her front porch and smoke a cigarette. On Saturday it was 39 degrees out while I was running and sure enough, there she was all bundled up and sitting on her little bench with a cigarette. I'm a little ashamed to admit, but after 2-3 years of seeing this lady off an on when I go running, I prayed for her for the first time. A prayer that she would allow God to loose the chains of her addiction. Not that I know now what its like to be addicted, I'm not trying to make that claim, but I think a log has been removed from my eye.


So there you have it. 10 main things I learned. My overall Whole30 Whole26 experience was challenging, expensive and despite only losing 5 pounds, it really was rewarding.

I do feel motivated to eat healthy through out the week, I'm still staying away from soda at least until after my 1/2 marathon, and I'm settling into a nice pattern of working out during the week. After 4 weeks of consistent exercising I am starting to see more definition in my legs and arms and that is motivating me to continue!

I think doing a cleanse or restricting yourself to a "clean" diet for a specific amount of time is beneficial as it helps refocus your mind and body. You have to be careful not to binge after coming off of something like this and look at it as kickstart to healthier eating overall. There's no way I could stick to the Whole30 every day of my life - but it's helped me take a step back, shake out some of the junk that my body was craving and say going forward we're going to allow some not so good stuff back in but only in moderation. Eventually I would like to get to the point where we're eating clean 75-80% of the time and allowing the other 20-25% to be room for convenience and treats. Healthy living is a lifelong process and I think you need to give yourself grace but also give yourself goals. I don't want to look back at my life and remember how I was always on a dieting/binging cycle trying to achieve unrealistic goals, but I also want to look back and know that I didn't waste a perfectly healthy body by feeding it junk and not taking care of it.



What about you? Have you stuck to your New Years goals of getting healthier? What have you learned along the way?