Make it a family affair!

Last weekend I was talking to my hunny about all I want to accomplish and how challenging it is when I just want to give our son all of my time and energy. He came up with the GREATEST idea. Being the competitive guy he is he suggested a "challenge." He too wants to live a healthier lifestyle (which is one of the things I wanted to do) and so we decided to do it together. So every evening when he gets home from work the three of us workout everyday. We try to do something different every day. Some days well do different workouts at home, some days we will go to the beach and I will run with Enzo, and he will swim with sharks. And I even introduced him to yoga ( my fav!!).  Me being who I am decided to take this whole challenge thing UP A NOTCH and challenge myself with three simultaneous challenges to help get my life simplified.

Our beach run view

With all the baby stuff fitting it's way into our life and our house everything seems out of sorts. Instead of stressing about getting everything done I've decided to take the next few weeks and each day organize just one drawer, one closet, or one room.

I am still on the road to finish all my unfinished projects. I still can not believe how many times I start something, and then put it away to be forgotten before it is done. So now, for the next three weeks each day I work on one project. Be it reading a little to finish another book, something crafty, or an errand I've needed to take care of for a while.

One of the projects I finished this week

As for our healthy lifestyle challenge, we are working out every single day and I am cooking us one new healthy meal a day. A friend of mine introduced to the green monster and I must say I am hooked. What a great way to eat your greens! Also we have been trying new foods each week. Last week we started on a chia seed kick. These great little seeds for full or protein and Omega-3's. They are great in smoothies, soups and on yogurt. We are also getting Enzo in our healthy lifestyle! We are starting the solid food introduction and are making our own homemade organic baby food. My little herbivore just L.O.V.E's peas!!...Yuck! haha But I am glad he prefers healthy choices over sweet tastes like apples and mango's. I know it will just be a matter of time until he is a chocoholic like me....Anywho!  I know a lifestyle is a permanent change, not just three weeks. But the three weeks it just to establish a habit.

Are you looking to change a habit or two??
GET ON IT

A little bit of sunshine is all you need

Nothing revitalizes a person like a few days at the beach. The fresh ocean air, the peaceful sound waves crashing against the shore make, and not having a care in the world….(except for Enzo of course) AHHH a little piece of heaven on earth!

This past Tuesday was my honey’s birthday and we decided to get away for a few days down in MIAMI. We found an AWESOME deal on groupon.com. LOVE  that site. They hooked us up with an ocean front suite on the beach 11 stories up AND threw in a bottle of champagne, 2 massages at the spa, and breakfast buffet every morning; all for pennies, basically. We have needed a getaway for some time now. The stresses of being new to motherhood (fatherhood for Narcis), life in general and such can really get to a person.  Mental health is so important.

Our view

Our only family photo, I need to get better with that

The weekend prior to our mini vacay I ran my first 5k! Excuse me while I toot my own horn, TOOT TOOT, I ran the ENTIRE time! I came in 229 out of 342… For me that is a fantastic outcome as I thought I would surely come in last. The best part was seeing my loves at the finish line rooting me on! Unfortunately I have no pictures to share because I forgot to charge the camera.

I also finished another book, The Key to Rebecca. I had never heard of it before. I am not even sure how it ended up in our house, but it is a great read. It has everything! Action, Love, Sex, Espionage, Betrayal, Suspense. The story takes place in WWII, and I love stories about this era. I got into it after reading Anne Frank’s Diary back in 5^th grade. Well, Enzo is up and all he wants to do is sit up and play nowadays…and I am PARANOID he is going to fall back and knock himself out…so to play baby catcher I go! Until next time, ciao!  

5 Months

A little sunshine is all you need

Nothing revitalizes a person like a few days at the beach. The fresh ocean air, the peaceful sound waves crashing against the shore make, and not having a care in the world….(except for Enzo of course) AHHH a little piece of heaven on earth! 

This past Tuesday was my honey’s birthday and we decided to get away for a few days down in MIAMI. We found an AWESOME deal on groupon.com. LOVE  that site. They hooked us up with an ocean front suite on the beach 11 stories up AND threw in a bottle of champagne, 2 massages at the spa, and breakfast buffet every morning; all for pennies, basically. We have needed a getaway for some time now. The stresses of being new to motherhood (fatherhood for Narcis), life in general and such can really get to a person.  Mental health is so important. 

Our view

Our only family photo..need to get better with that..

The weekend prior to our mini vaycay I ran my first 5k! Excuse me while I toot my own horn, TOOT TOOT, I ran the ENTIRE time! I came in 229 out of 342… For me that is a fantastic outcome as I thought I would surely come in last. The best part was seeing my loves at the finish line rooting me on! Unfortunately I have no pictures to share because I forgot to charge the camera. 

I also finished another book, The Key to Rebecca. I had never heard of it before. I am not even sure how it ended up in our house, but it is a great read. It has everything! Action, Love, Sex, Espionage, Betrayal, Suspense. The story takes place in WWII, and I love stories about this era. I got into it after reading Anne Frank’s Diary back in 5^th grade. Well, Enzo is up and all he wants to do is sit up and play nowadays…and I am PARANOID he is going to fall back and knock himself out…so to play baby catcher I go! Until next time, ciao!  

Enzo 5 months :)

Ready or Not Here I Come...

“Wake up Leah, it’s midnight” As a little girl I loved to hear those words. It meant two things: food and Dad was home. He would make me all sorts of different midnight snacks. Sometimes it would be is homemade sauce and meatballs, sometimes cinnamon sugar on buttery English muffins. Whatever it was, I ate it and the time I got to spend with my dad, up. We would sit in the kitchen and talk and eat. I don’t remember a single thing we talked about.  My dad and I always had pointless, fun conversations. He was always more of a friend than a father to me.  Growing up my mom was the disciplinarian. She would yell at me to clean my room and when I didn’t she would come in armed with a garbage bag and her “I’ll show you” attitude and take all my toys to throw them away. I would cry and cry of course because how can any little girl live without her Barbie dream house? Her real life peeing baby doll? Sometime after I would cry myself to sleep my Dad would go out and bring in my toys.  I can’t say I agreed with my mom’s parenting style. I kept my room a mess until I lived on my own, now it’s spotless and I even make my bed every day…… who would have thought?? But I thought the world of my Dad, he was my hero.

Pops and I a few years back

Over the years my Dad has always been there for me when I really needed him. Whenever I was stuck, in over my head, he was there for me.  Not  “there” in the right by my side kind of way, but there as in I could always call him up and he’d listen.  You see, in the past 26 years of my life I have seen my dad maybe for 10 of them, in the last 8 years I’ve seen him all of maybe 2 at most 3 weeks. Total. It’s shitty. I am not going to lie. I think it makes him a p.o.s. sometimes. I think he doesn’t have the slightest idea of what priorities are or what they should be. Over last 26 years of my life my dad has done some really REALLY shitty things. Things that make others think he’s a horrible father. Things that make it really hard to respect him. Things that I don’t know if I’ll ever get over.  Ya see, if it weren’t for the fact that I only have one dad, and I will never have another, I would probably never talk to him again. I have written this next part a few times. I wanted to share the shitty things he’s done. But honestly, I think everyone already knows.  And to tell you the truth, I have thought about it and Enzo won’t know those things.  When Enzo hears stories about his grandpa it is going to be only the good stories. Because who really wants to be remembered for all their mistakes? Not I. When you leave this world all that is really truly left behind is your story. Other people’s memories of you. I always lived my life as an open book for this reason. However, some stories aren’t really good portrayals of a person. Plus, I don’t want Enzo to think that type of behavior and disregard for others is acceptable.

I signed up for my first 5k for this Saturday. I am not ready, not by a long shot. I have never run that long all at one time. In fact I haven’t ran in about a month. I went to go the last two days but I’ve got Enzo and no babysitter so running in the rain just isn’t an option.  I figure I have something else to drive me though.  The race is for prostate cancer. Two years ago my Dad surprised with a visit on Father’s day to tell us he had it. He went though radiation and just finished it up a few months ago. God willing it is all out of his system and hasn’t spread anywhere. My dad didn’t have time to prepare for cancer. He also didn’t let it stop him. He went to work. He lived his life.  So what if I didn’t prepare to run a few measly miles? If I can do this to honor my toy saving, midnight snacking, old as dirt, no hair dad; I’d be honored to.

It's Not What You Look At, It's What You See

Keeping the "Mind over Matter" mentality is not easy. It just does not come natural to me. Always seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, the brighter sides of things, looking for the positives in negative situations...it takes conscious effort for me. I find it soooo much easier to dwell on the crap, bask in a horrible situation, or just complain about what is actually happening. Everyday, in most situations, I have to stop myself when these little evil thoughts come up  and say "Hey Leah, how do you wanna live?" and then ( I am warning you right now, this is VERY corny) I respond to myself  "Positive." And I have to say it very assertively or else I might not believe myself.

I even added pleats!

Lately, I have been real good about believing in myself. I've been enjoying the greenish grass I have. Enzo and I went to spend a few days at my moms for our own little mini "getaway." We enjoyed home cooked meals (by someone else) and my mom helped me finish a few more of my unfinished projects! WOO HOO!! I can now say I can make a shirt from a few yards of fabric, and a scarf. Now, I don't plan on going all Suzy Homemaker and making my own clothes or anything. But wow was it easy! Four maybe 5 or 6 years ago I bought this pattern and some fabric on sale with the intentions of making a shirt for an interview. I never got the interview and my shirt never made it past the cutting out the pattern phase. Turns out my arms are still to big for the sleeves I cut so I made it a sleeveless shirt instead. My honey was so surprised. He keeps telling me he loves how I am still able to surprise him. I really like that trait about myself. I am MULTIFACETED. I give credit to my mom for that. Growing up she made sure she entertained every interest I had from dance, to baton, to marine science and sign language. If I expressed an interest in it she made sure to sign me up for a class or enroll me in a group. She also never forced me to do anything so when I was done I never had to go back after I finished up whatever I committed to. This taught me two different types of lessons: first, it taught me how to hold a commitment and second, it helped create a well rounded individual. These are things I wish to teach Enzo as he grows up. I want to expose him to a multitude of "things." But not so much that he is ever over whelmed or interferes with his education. I never want to force him to do anything. However, I will be signing him up for soccer in 3 years....and then I will hope he loves it!

Made entirely from a t-shirt

***OHHHH!! I had almost forgot! I can cross something off my BID (Before I Die) List....I was a blonde for a day! Made me realize I LOVE my dark hair and it wont be going anywhere, anytime soon.

A Cloud of Orange

Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Unfortunately there has not been much to update you on. I've had this nasty little black cloud following me around for a few weeks now. Today, however, I painted it ORANGE! I figure since my mood is nothing more than my state of mind than I need to take control of it and make it what I want. And I have always thought the color orange was such a happy and pretty color. So if anything is going to be following me around it needs to be happy and pretty with a little sparkle in it too.

I have so much to be grateful for. I have a fantastic little munchkin, a hard working honey, true friends, and supportive family. I truly am blessed. I believe my cloud is just full of frustration as I am trying to settle into my new life. I have always kept so busy working multiple jobs at once while going to school full time and keeping up a pretty busy social life. My brain and body was always on the go. My life now is feeling a little too habitual lately. And the monotony of everyday life has interfered with my dreams, my goals. But only because I had let it. So today I took control and started getting back on MY track. I had been working on completing some of the millions of projects I had started but never got around to finishing. I ordered something I can NOT wait to share with you all and I finished a couple of the books I was reading ( GO READ THREE CUPS OF TEA) and I finished the box I started...4 of them actually :)

This one I made from a shoe box

 

 

 

These I made from diaper boxes

The cloud hasn't been around me all day everyday at least. I have had many great hours with Enzo. We were playing dress up today...my cute little monkey! He truly is the light of my life. Staying home with him is a blessing. It takes a little sacrifice to be a stay at home mom. Financially, and mentally it can be very tolling. But it is worth everything to me to be able to raise my son and I thank God everyday for all he has blessed me with.

Rule of Five

Lately there have been a number of things bothering me. I usually have no trouble keeping a positive attitude but lately I have been unable to let go of some negative feelings I have.

Bummer #1  A couple of months ago I set a few goals and I have yet to meet them

Bummer #2  Having boundary issues with family

Bummer #3 This 100 degree weather, I miss being outside, comfortably.

Many years ago someone introduced to the Rule of Five. You can use the R of 5 to help you figure out if something is worth your time. Essentially you take a situation that is bothering you, for example, your mad you can not find your shoes. Then you think, will this effect me in 5 minutes: yes, you could be late if you don't find your shoes. Will this effect me in 5 days: No, whomever will understand. Will it effect me in 5 years? No, I will not remember this.

If I look at what is bugging me only bummer #1 and 2 pass the R of 5 test. Because, in 5 years if I don't solve these two issues there will be problems. Bummer #1 I know how to fix, I need to stop being lazy and really get on the ball. I have have set my goals and I know what I need to do. I just need to do it. Bummer #2 I just am at a loss for at the moment.  Come on Universe I need your help!
In Baby News Enzo is 4 months old today! I can not believe a short four months is is all that has passed. In some ways I feel like the time has flown by, in other ways I feel like he has always been apart of my life. Which, I guess in a way its true. He has been there the entire time of my new mommy life.

Day 1

1 Month

2 Months

3 Months

 

 

 

 

Today, 4 Months