Got the Clear? Almost.

Yesterday I headed to the doctor for my 6 week checkup. I was hoping that I would be completely cleared but there are still some things that they have to keep an eye on. The good news is that I can start training for my first 5k since getting pregnant (almost). Before I went to the doctor I jumped ahead of the gun and wrote out my running plan but the doctor told me I should wait one more week. (which is okay because this week is freezing). I'll keep you all posted when I start, I am pretty nervous, it has been a while since I have jogged but I can't wait to get moving!

Another thing I wanted to share today is something I made Sunday night. It is one of my easiest recipes and it is great for leftovers. Since Brunson arrived I need quick, easy meals that just need to be heated up. So for all you mommas on the go this is a good one. It's actually good for anyone that loves lasagna but doesn't love all the carbs. 

Here you go!

Noodleless Lasagna

Ingredients:

92% lean ground beef

Low sugar marinara sauce ( I use Hunt's)

Ricotta cheese (part skim)

Fresh Spinach

Reduced fat mozzarella/cheddar cheese

It's simple.

Preheat oven to 350'

Cook your ground beef add marinara

In large casserole dish layer fresh spinach (layer a lot because it does shrink)

Then meat sauce

Then ricotta cheese

Then shredded cheese

Then repeat.

Put in oven and let cook for about 20 minutes.

See Simple.

Enjoy!

It's Not All About You Anymore

When I started Little Blue Dress I wasn't happy with myself and basically the most exercise I got was walking to my car from work. Now don't get me wrong I was happy with my life but not with how I was treating my body.

So I decided to make a change. January 20, 2013 was a life changing day for me, I began this blog. That day I started tracking everything I ate. To begin with I thought the weight would just drop off because I cut out all the fatty foods that I had been eating. But that was not the case. I lost a pound here and there but not what I expected. So I knew I had to do more. I realized that I was eating out a lot. Even though I was eating healthier options you really never know what kind of oils and other ingredients they are putting in your food. So I taught myself to cook. I absolutely fell in love with cooking, it was my therapy.

The pounds started to drop a little faster but I wanted to be fit. Growing up I was pretty active, so it wasn't like I had never ran a mile before. So I decided to get a gym membership, sign up for my first 5k and get my butt moving. 

Joining the gym was exactly what I needed. I would go every morning before work and sweat it out on the treadmill and then I would make up a different circuit workouts to do after. I made it fun and never did the same thing. I suddenly started to melt away. 

I was the healthiest, happiest, fittest I had ever been in my life. 

I had finally reached all my goals that I had set on January 20th. 

Then late one November night I got ENGAGED! We were so excited and just couldn't wait to start our life together. I was pretty pumped because unlike a lot of brides to be I didn't have to go on a crash diet to fit into my dream dress, which happened to be my mother's.

Once we were married I kind of put the gym on the back burner and enjoyed late night take out with my husband and found that I put on a few unwanted pounds. Which can be expected your first year of marriage but I didn't want it to get out of control.

Then on Easter this past year, as my husband and I were driving back from vacation I noticed I wasn't feeling right. That night we got the best surprise of our life.

We were going to be a party of three!

We were so excited and just couldn't wait for our little man to get here.

During my pregnancy, it was like my body hated anything healthy. All my healthy recipes that I previously loved I could no longer even smell. I basically lived on fruit loops, Wendy's chicken sandwich's, Ice cream and pizza. I am surprised my body didn't go into shock, well I think it probably did. I had never eaten so unhealthy in my life but honestly I just couldn't help it. I craved all the bad. I gained over 50 pounds with my pregnancy and the only reason I know that is because they told me my final weight in the hospital. I quit looking at the scale at 6 months. I was shocked and kind of terrified because I knew I had to lose it but at that point I just wanted to love on my newborn and not worry about it. 

Once we got home it was like some kind of switch went off in my body. I craved healthy foods again and the thought of eating the fatty foods that I had been eating made me sick. So I thought all this weight that I gained would just drop off because I was breastfeeding and eating healthy again. Wrong. Yes, I have lost a good amount of weight but it just seems to be going a lot slower than I thought it would. Then last week, I went shopping with my mom and decided it was time to get a new pair of pants. Let's just say I didn't come home with any pants and I found myself very discouraged. My mom reminded me that I did just have a baby a month and a half ago but it just didn't seem to matter. I was having a pity party for myself. Then my mom said six words that completely changed my mindset. " It's not all about you anymore".  That is exactly what I needed to hear.

I feel like a lot of new mommas go through the same thing. When you are pregnant you really don't think about the weight gain because well your pregnant and it is expected. But once your bundle of joy has arrived you are left with a body that can be unrecognizable. When you look in the mirror you may think to yourself, am I ever going to look like me again?" Not to mention, when you have friends that have babies and it just seems to melt off of them in the hospital. Being a momma can be stressful enough. We have to learn that once we have a child "it's not all about us anymore". We have another human to keep alive so why add stress to your life about something so ridiculous. I will eventually get back to where I was but I can't let myself get angry every time I try on clothes or cut calories because that isn't fair to my little one. I don't need to be a size 4 quite yet and I may never be that size again and that is okay. I just need to focus on my little one, enjoy this time with him, continue to eat right, get back to my workouts and remember "it's not all about me."

Breastfeeding VS. Bottle Feeding

I think one of the hardest things for me as a mother was deciding whether to breastfeed or bottle feed. When I was in the hospital, the baby nurse came in and had a ton of questions regarding Brunson and once she got to the question whether I was going to breastfeed or bottle feed I found myself unable to answer. Which before, I said no matter what I was going to breastfeed but once it was time to decide I just couldn't. So she made things easy for me and marked that I would be doing both. Which not knowing that in a few hours that would be the best decision ever. Like I mentioned in a previous post, Brunson wieghed 9.4 lbs and was 22' inches long. Labor was tough and long and once he finally arrived I had no energy and was on a lot of pain medications. I was so excited about him being here but was in no condition to learn how to breastfeed. So the nurse gave me a bottle so that I could feed him and then they took him to the nursery for the night so I could get some rest.

The next morning, the lactation consultant came in and asked if I was ready. After having a full nights sleep, my mind was cleared and I knew that I wanted to try and breastfeed. When we got home, I found breastfeeding very calming and it was such a bonding experience for us. But then the growth spurts started and sleepless nights happened. One day I found myself sitting on the couch with dirty hair, pj's mid-day, in so much pain and crying, all while trying to breastfeed. At that moment I felt lost and wasn't sure I could continue. Thankfully my husband was there by my side and let me know that whatever decision I made he was okay with it. So I decided to go see my lactation consultant one more time before I threw in the towel. I was so glad I did because I found out I had mastitis (which is a breast infection) and he wasn't latching on correctly. So this explained why I was in so much pain. I also did research on the benefits of breastfeeding and bottle feeding and I found things about both that I liked. Now that the infection is gone and he is latching on correctly we are back to it being calming and a bonding experience. I have to take this day by day and do what is best for the both of us, so I continue to breastfeed because TODAY it is best for us but if tomorrow I start to bottle feed then that is okay too, 

This post is mainly for new mommas, to let them know that they are not alone. Deciding whether to breastfeed or bottle feed can be such a hard decision. It also makes it a lot harder when others can put added  pressure on you with what they think you should be doing. Some people are pro breastfeeding, some are pro bottle feeding, Some will have their opinions on breastfeeding and others on bottle feeding. You have to go deaf to all the opinions and figure out what works best for you and your child. You are a mother and your instincts will kick in and you will know what is best. 

1 Month Checkup & Stuffed Sweet Potatoes

Today we headed off to the doctor for Brunson's one month check up. I can't believe he is already 5 weeks old. Before I know it, it's going to be time to head back to work and that might be one of the hardest things ever. So for now, I just have to soak in every moment. 

Now back to the appointment. Since I am a first time momma I had many questions, like is that rash on his head baby acne, should he be on a sleeping schedule, if he is wanting to eat all the time is he having a growth spurt? I absolutely love his doctor and he basically explained everything I am experiencing and everything I will experience in the coming month. His checkup went great and he is in the top percentiles for everything. He is currently weighing 10.1 lbs and 23 inches long. The only part of the appointment that we didn't care for was getting a shot. Let's just say we both shed a few tears but we made it through. This just gave us an excuse to have extra cuddle time tonight.

His face explains how he felt about getting a shot! 

Now to my stuffed sweet potatoes. I have shared these before but I thought I would share them again because they are so good. For the stuffing, I used my leftover slow cooker fiesta chicken but you can use anything you want. (recipe in my previous post) These are super easy to make! 

Start by preheating your oven to 400'. Then cook your sweet potato until you can stick a fork through it, let cool for a minute and then cut in half. Let cook for a little bit longer until the outside is crispy. Then scrape out the inside of the sweet potato. In mixing bowl, mix sweet potato, stuffing and whatever else you want. For tonight I'm adding bbq sauce for extra flavor. Then you will want to mix everything together and pour mixture into your sweet potato shells. Then top with shredded cheese. Let cook for about 20 more minutes. 

Let cool and enjoy!!

I was advised by my doctor to hold off on workouts for a couple more weeks so for now I am just walking around our neighborhood, which is always good to clear my head and get some fresh air. Starting next week I will be adding in some ab and arm workouts. I sure am ready to get in a good sweat.

HAPPY THURSDAY!!

Brunson Phillip & a new recipe to start my journey

Hi everyone, I am excited to say that starting today Little Blue Dress is up and running. 

December 2nd we welcomed our sweet little boy into this world and every second has been an amazing adventure. I didn't have the easiest labor so needless to say the recovery has taken a little bit longer than most but every time I look at my son it was totally worth it. Now that he is almost 5 weeks old I have decided it is time to start gaining back muscle and really focus on living life as healthy as possible. Now since I am nursing I can't cut back on calories, plus that never works for me anyways, but I can say goodbye to all the fatty foods that I craved while I was pregnant. I am not looking to lose the weight today or even this month because I understand that it took nine months to put on the weight so it's not going to just fall off. I have many goals this year and I plan to share them all with you. I will be sharing my healthy recipes, my workouts, and of course, life with Brunson. 

So I thought the best way to start off this new journey and New Year would be to share a NEW recipe. I like to call it my slow cooker fiesta chicken.

What you will need:

chicken breast

1/3 less fat cream cheese

salsa

peppers (green,yellow,red)

onion

quinoa

shredded mexican cheese

avocado

Start by putting your non cooked chicken, cream cheese and salsa into your crock pot. Then add a cup of water. Set on low and let cook for 4 hours

About 20 minutes before the chicken is ready, in a large skillet add 1 T of extra virgin olive oil, chopped peppers and onions. Saute.

Also go ahead and cook your quinoa as well.

After about 3 1/2 hours your chicken will be very tender and easy to shred.

Once everything is ready, top you quinoa with your chicken, peppers, onions and then finish it off with shredded cheese and avocado. Serve immediately.

Looking forward to this coming year and experiencing a lot of first and 

and getting back to my healthy self. 

  

Experiencing Motherhood for the First Time & Getting Back My Healthy Lifestyle

Like I mentioned in my previous post, the reason I haven't posted in quite some time is because we are currently expecting and since this is our first I wanted to keep it more private but now with just a few days away from delivery I thought I would set a gameplay for my recovery. I have gained quite a bit of weight, which is going to be totally worth it, but I am ready to get back to my healthy self. I think I have had enough pizza, Wendy's chicken sandwich's and anything with sugar to last me a lifetime. I am ready to get back in the kitchen and start cooking my healthy recipes and I really can't wait start running again. So today I am going to share all my goals for this new journey I am about to begin.

My first goal is to enjoy every second with my little man. Being there for him is the most important thing because I will never get this time back with him. I am going to soak it in and know that I am so blessed to be able to experience motherhood.

Next, is to get back in the kitchen. I absolutely love to cook and there is nothing better than creating new clean, healthy recipes. The best way to start this is to make a grocery list at the beginning of every week to help plan out my meals. I will try to post those on Sunday (or Monday) along with my goals for that week.

Also, it is time for me to get my exercise on!! If you have ever been one that exercises regularly then you know how much better you feel. I realize that I am not going to be able to go run a 5k the day after I deliver but slowly I want to get back the strength and endurance I had before. I have already signed up for my first 5k in March. Goals Goals Goals!!!

Last I want to make sure I get the rest needed to accomplish all of this. I realize with a newborn my sleeping habits will change dramatically but my goal is to get on a schedule as soon as possible.

My posts will become more frequent once we get little man home and settled. So I hope that you will join my journey to getting back my healthy lifestyle and experiencing motherhood for the first time!! 

Remember me?

Hello there blogger friends!! I know I know, I haven’t posted in quite some time and I even almost started a new blog BUT I have a good excuse why I have been MIA. We are expecting!!

 

I decided not to document my entire pregnancy, mainly because this is our first and everything was so new and a little overwhelming for me and I’ll admit it,  I have not been that concerned about healthy eating and fitness. Now I want to start off by letting you all know that I am not back quite yet I still have 6 weeks until our little man is here but I wanted to let everyone know that I will be returning once we all get settled in. I have plenty of goals that I want to reach in 2016  and I am counting down the days where I can really focus on them. Of course little man will take up the majority of my time but he is the main reason for my wanting to get back into shape. I want to be a good influence on him. I want him to grow up knowing that healthy living is a way of life. I want him to want to eat his veggies and to want to go outside and play. There is so much that I want for this little boy and it is all going to start from day 1. Healthy living in our household will be the way of life. I do not want to be the family that eats fast food every night and then comes home and sits on the couch and watches TV. So over the next 6 weeks I am going to be planning out recipes, workouts and really just getting everything ready so when it is time I am ready to move forward 110%. I hope you are all excited and will join me on this journey (again). I know that this time it will be a lot different because I will be a first time mom but I am so ready for it. Feel free to message me things that you want to see on the blog or if you want me to try something out.

Live happy and healthy,

Mel

Girls Night Out

Today around lunch time my sister n law texted me to see if I would want to meet her downtown for sushi. Neither one of our husbands like sushi so I was totally down because we never get it.

 

 

So we met downtown after work ready to chow down.

 

We started out with a few things and I will worn you, you better grab a snack because this might make you a little hungry.

 

This was the tuna sunshine.

 

Now I can't remember what this is called but it was probably my favorite.

 

Mel had mussels, I'm allergic so I stayed away but don't they look tasty?

 

We then decided to share two rolls and oh my goodness they were delicious.

I have to say the one that Mel chose was the best and the prettiest. Can you guess which one? It made me think of Christmas.

 

Now to our favorite part of the night.

 

Poppington's Gourmet Popcorn is local store downtown and let's just say their popcorn is the best thing I have ever had and I don't even like popcorn that much. Plus the owners are so nice. I talked to them tonight and I am going to do an interview with them after the New Year to share. So get ready!

 

They literally have any flavor you could imagine.

 

The great thing is they have already decorated for Christmas. When you walk in it is just magical. I mean really.... Christmas lights and popcorn...what else do you need?

 

The smell is just insane and they will let you try any flavor you like. Now since I am on my 21 day challenge I only tried a kernel or two :)

 

What's a popcorn shop without your typical popcorn popper?

 

I clearly know what I am getting family and friends this year for Christmas.

We had a blast just looking around and checking out how many flavors they really do make. But I will wait till the interview to share all of that.

 

Let's just say "Girl's Night Out" was a complete success.

 

Now tomorrow I am going to be sharing my "design" post. The hubby and I are about to close on our first home and you know that I already have ideas. We are SO excited!!!

 

Happy Thursday Blogger Friends

Being an Aunt

 

 

On Friday after work I headed home to visit one of my very best friend's so I that I could meet her beautiful daughter. She was my maid of honor and I just kept thinking to myself on the way home everything that we have experienced. As you can see I had plenty of time to think, the traffic was horrible.

 

 

I stayed the night at my parents house which as you can see is probably my favorite place in the world. Every time I go home it just brings back so many happy memories and it is just so cozy. My mom cooked an amazing "healthy" dinner just for me and then we just sat back, relaxed and watched Hallmark Christmas movies.

 

Now the next morning I woke up with so much excitement because I was finally getting to meet a new "niece".  I have been counting down the days for this sweet girl to get here and I just can't believe how perfect she is.

 

 

 Here I am telling her secrets about her momma because I know them all :) Just kidding, I better wait till she is older. So for now I will just spoil her rotten.

My momma thinks of Andria as one of her own so she of course had to come meet this bundle of joy.  

 

 

Seriously look at this precious child. Nothing gets more perfect then her.

 

And look at all that hair. Her momma and I of course had to play with a few hair clips.

 

 

It has been hard for me to decide who she looks like the most but one thing I do know she sleeps just like her momma....her mouth is wide open.

 

 There are moments in your life that really make you sit back and smile. Seeing my best friend with her first child really is probably one of the best things I have ever experienced. Can't wait to make many memories with them.

 

After I gave sweet kisses and hugs goodbye I headed back home because I had this one to babysit.

He get's pretty excited when Aunt Mel and Uncle Shaun babysit.

 

 

We started off the night just straight chillin. Seriously I am framing this picture. (and I know mom I don't need to be drinking diet mountain dew) :)

We literally played the entire night and when I say that, I mean I was down crawling around all night. My knees and elbows were so sore that next day.

 

He loves showing Uncle Shaun his toys.

 

 

 We had a blast and as you can see this little boy was exhausted. Bedtime has never been so easy :) He is probably thinking, really Aunt Mel another picture?

 

 As you can see I had a baby filled weekend and I wouldn't have changed a minute of it.

 

Being an aunt is basically the best feeling in the world and I am just so happy to become an aunt to another sweet, perfect little girl.

But with all this aunt talk I can't leave out this awesome little man :)