Baby #2 is on her way!

Yep, we are expecting our second baby girl and couldn't be more thrilled! Lord willing, we will be welcoming the 4th member of our family at the end of February 2019. We are so excited and blessed and happy Emma will have a little sister!

I blogged through my last pregnancy with Emma, and I want to TRY to do the same with this one. But let me tell you, being pregnant with a toddler is no joke. For all you first time pregnant ladies out there, ENJOY ALL THE REST. Because right now, I feel like I am forgetting that I'm pregnant because I am so busy running around a 16 month old, working full time, and taking care of all the things. It's okay though, God provides His strength and that's the only way I could get through!

I'm 15 weeks now, and finally starting to feel better and shedding that first trimester getting-hit-by-a-car feeling. I thought I'd do a little recap about how this pregnancy has been so far...hope y'all enjoy!

How far along are you?

15 weeks and 2 days.

Gender:

GIRL!!

How big is the baby?

She is an avocado this week....so cute!

Total weight gain:

I am still below my pre-pregnancy weight since I lost some in the first trimester. I will say that I am definitely hungrier with this baby compared to my pregnancy with Emma, so I am sure I will be gaining weight in no time!

How am I feeling?

Pretty exhausted...the nausea really knocked me off my feet in the first trimester, but I have finally been feeling better the past couple weeks! A bit more energy and being able to enjoy the nourishing foods I love!

Maternity clothes?

Oh yes! I feel like I started showing the minute I found out I was pregnant this time around! It's like my body knew to just pop out!

Favorite workouts:

I do at-home Beachbody workouts because they have gotten me the best results and I've never been as consistent as I am when do their programs! Right now I am doing Liift 4, a 4 day/week program, plus adding their maternity workouts and MMA style kickboxing workouts!

Stretch marks:

None and I hope it stays that way!

Cravings:

Gimme ALL the Greek salad! And can I just say, I am so grateful I've been craving salads because for a solid 2 months my diet consisted of ritz crackers, cheez its, and bread. Those are the only foods that seemed to settle my stomach. It's such a relief to be able to eat some nourishing veggies again!

Sleep:

Sleep has been AWFUL, but it was the same with Emma so I was expecting it!

What I miss:

Intense workouts, more than 1 cup of coffee/day, and having more energy to play with Emma. She is such a good independent player and loves her toys. She sings and talks to me all day long while I rest and sit on the floor with her. I just wish I could be more active with her, but for now I know this will do, and she still loves me! (Mom guilt is real, guys).

What I am looking forward to:

Having two little girls to play with and enjoy! I am an only child and prayed for a sister almost every day of my life, so I feel so blessed and happy that Emma will be able to enjoy that special bond.

That's all so far on this pregnancy! Thank you for all of your sweet words. We are praying for a smooth pregnancy and healthy baby, and are so excited for our new blessing!

Pregnancy and Body Image

It is freaking crazy to me how big my belly is getting. Being 32 weeks pregnant, it literally feels like there is a basketball in there. It makes me SO happy because it reassures me that baby girl is growing, and feeling her little kicks and rolls excite me every single time.

But a fresh outlook on body image is needed in pregnancy. I always knew that I'd be okay with the weight gain that comes along with pregnancy (and thank GOODNESS that I am finally gaining weight now; didn't start till the third trimester!) but even when you know you are gaining weight for the right reasons, it is hard sometimes to get used to your growing body and the escalating numbers on the scale.

I love my growing baby bump, it's my favorite part of pregnancy! I love that people notice and ask me about my baby, and I loveeeeeeeee the sweet lady at Panera who gave me free coffee and a cookie the other day in the name of "feeding the baby!" It's so fun to be growing and feeling the baby move. But it can also be taxing on your body image, especially if you are a gal like me who has struggled with body image and weight her whole life.

Pregnancy is such a delicate time when you are gaining weight and WANTING to gain weight. My doctors (both my OB and my high risk perinatologist) both want me eating lots of proteins and nourishing foods to support Baby Emma's growth. So that's what I've been doing! I am always one to listen to my doctors (expect when my doc diagnoses me with a gluten allergy and I still eat gluten....but that's another story for another time. Still working on that one!).

But I won't lie and say that I am totally cool with not being able to flip around in bed easily, go on a run when I'm stressed, being told how "huge" I am, and seeing those numbers creep on the scale. On top of that, with my history of binge eating, a LOT of my pregnancy symptoms are similar to my post-binge episodes such as heartburn, nausea, burping, and indigestion. It is so hard for me to experience the symptoms of a binge, but know deep down that I haven't binged! By the grace of God I have been binge-free throughout the pregnancy, but these symptoms can mess with your head! When I look down and see a big belly and am struggling with heartburn and nausea, I can't help but feel "guilty" even though I've done nothing wrong.

And isn't that just the way of the devil? To get us living in regret and guilt even when God has purified us and made us whole? It's terrible and I hate it. I am praying for God to renew my mind and take ownership of my thoughts. Because all I can say is pregnancy does funky things to your thoughts and moods.

All I know is that I am proud of every pound I've gained because I know these pounds are nourishing my sweet baby girl. And the heartburn and nausea and ickiness will pass, it's temporary and oh-so worth it. And I am excited to be looking pregnant because hellooo I get free cookies! And I know that I am doing my best to nourish my baby while giving myself grace for the occasional sweets and treats. I appreciate my body and love that God has given us women this gift of growing a child inside of us. I mean if you stop and think about it, it's pretty crazy! And no bad thoughts or negative body image can take that crazy miracle away from me. I have 8 more weeks (or maybe less depending on when she makes her debut!) of being THIS close to my baby girl and sharing my body with her. And I'm going to enjoy it!

My body has gone through many changes over the years, but hands down, this is the best change of all.

Recap: Week 1 of 21 day fix!

I can't believe I am one week down of doing the 21 day fix. And in my third trimester too! I'm feeling amazing and energized while doing this program, so I thought I'd share how my first week went! 

I started off the week with Total Body Cardio which is pretty much my favorite workout of them all! 28 mins of cardio intervals with weights leave you sweaty and feeling so accomplished at the end! Even modifying for pregnancy got me working up a sweat! The rest of the week's workouts were lower fix, cardio fix, and dirty 30 fix. Upper fix is done mostly lying on your back/with planks, which I can't do while preggers! So I did Body Beast arms instead (I love having access to all these different programs). Also, 21 day fix has Pilates and Yoga days, but since they have a lot of back and core work, I subbed those out with some Core de Force (Beachbody's martial arts workout), and Autumn's active maternity series. Having access to Beachbody on demand (basically Netflix for workouts!) makes it so easy to modify some things for pregnancy. I always always ALWAYS recommend my clients follow their programs from start to finish without modifications, but since I'm pregnant, I'm making some adjustments! I may even add some walks since the weather will be gorgeous, and rest days as I listen to my body and see what I need! 

Meal wise, I think I did pretty well! The first day doing the program, I had my gestational diabetes test. So I stick to protein all morning until I took the test in the afternoon, then had a big bowl of veggie green curry and brown rice for dinner! 

Breakfasts have consisted of spinach scrambles. I've been on an egg kick lately and I don't anticipate that changing anytime soon! Eggs have so many vital nutrients that are healthy for pregnancy, so I'm eating them up!

If you've been following me for a while, you'll know that ground turkey meat is a weekly staple for our home. My husband loves it, it takes 10 minutes to cook up, and it's easy to prep at the beginning of week! So most of my lunches last week were turkey, rice, salad, and fruit! 

For dinner, I chopped up some chicken sausage and potatoes, then seasoned with some cajun seasoning! Here is the recipe, it's super simple to make and tastes great as leftovers! 

Meals were delicious, workouts were on point, and I'd say I feel pretty motivated going into week 2! If you'd like to join me with this program, fill out this form and I will get in touch with you! There are spots still available for my March bootcamp that starts in a couple days, and we will be following this program and the meal plan! The accountability of these groups, plus the short workouts and easy to follow meal plan is what has kept time on track, so I highly recommend joining if you are interested! I'll be with you every step of the way!!

I hope you have a terrific Monday everyone! 

February Goals & Intentions

We are one month DOWN in 2017...isn't that nuts?! Life goes by so fast, and this year isn't going to be any different. Being pregnant, I feel like I am more conscious of each week that passes by as we get closer and closer to our due date. I'm excited because we can't wait to meet our little girl, but I'm also anxious! I'm such a planner and this is a situation where I just have to trust God and can't plan out much since there's really no telling when she's going to make her appearance or how life will look once Baby Girl enters our world! We are so excited to meet her and my heart just bursts when I think about finally seeing her face! It's been such an exciting time for hubby and I, and we keep praying that everything goes smoothly and that God continues to bless us with a healthy baby girl! 

Since it's the beginning of a new month, my habit is to set goals and intentions to give myself direction and focus for the month ahead! I have a lot of big goals and big dreams, and these small, monthly goals help me take the baby steps required to reach my bigger goals. I love goal setting and that feeling after you CRUSH a goal and can check off that box. I blame my type-A personality! We dietitians are all type-A...so it is what it is! After brainstorming, prayer, and reflection, here are my goals for February 2017! 

1. Workout 6x/week. I am loving being able to workout again during this pregnancy! My doctor told me that I can walk, dance, and do any low impact workouts that typical pregnant women would do. No running or sprinting obviously, and I am listening to my body, but I have just been so much happier and have less anxiety since I've begun to workout again! I am in week 3 of Country Heat, an awesome line dancing program I started, and have begun adding some of the Active Maternity workouts on Beachbody on Demand (BOD) into my routine. If you don't know what this is, BOD is basically like netflix for workouts! Beachbody streams their programs online and actually has an all-access pass right now that give you access to every single program Beachbody has ever made, plus the 3 new programs they are coming out with this year! BOD has given me SO much flexibility with my workouts! I've been able to follow along with the Country Heat program, plus add some BOD exclusives, such as the Active Maternity workout series! I am loving being able to workout, so my goal is to continue to workout 6x/week! 

2. Follow the 21 day fix container system. I've been following the 21 day fix container system to actually help me eat MORE during this pregnancy (I am following the highest calorie bracket because....pregnancy) and it's been helping me balance out my plate and eat more nourishing foods! I've had a lot of food aversions during this pregnancy, and following this meal plan has helped me eat more variety and actually get over some of the aversions I've been having. I am going to continue on with my meal plan, especially since my challenge group is starting tomorrow and the accountability will make things even easier! 

3. Figure out how to use our fancy camera. While we were on our honeymoon, my husband and I splurged and got ourselves a Canon SLR camera. We took pictures with it in Hawaii, and since then it has just been sitting in a drawer in our bedroom. I want to take my picture taking skills up a notch and start playing around with this camera this month! This goal has been a long time coming, but now that I've written it out publicly, I HAVE to follow through, right? So expect to see some higher-quality pictures soon, folks! 

4. Practice gratitude every day. This is something I KNOW I need more of in my life. Counting our complaints is so much easier than counting our blessings, isn't it? I have found that, with the complications we have with our pregnancy, getting used to a new job, and the typical stresses of everyday life, I've stopped feeling grateful and really thanking God for His blessings. But if you stop to think about it, God's blessings are always overflowing! We should be thanking Him daily for His grace, mercy, and provisions. Which is why I want to start practicing gratitude on a regular basis by keeping a journal next to my bed and jotting down three things I am thankful for each and every day. By doing this, my mind will focus on the good in my life, and not the countless worries and anxieties I could conjure up at a moment's notice! 

5. Track my spending. Ok guys, this one is a biggy. Considering my OCD personality and my love of tracking things, you would THINK I would have this concept under wraps. But, I don't. Each month, I start tracking my spending, only to stop by the 5th or 6th and then wonder where all the money went! Well, this month I am going to REALLY track every dollar spent and evaluate where I am spending my money, which in turn shows where my priorities lie. My hope is to be able to better budget my money and be a good steward of the blessings God has given me! 

If you'd like to join in with me on any of these goals, please comment below and let me know! I'd love to have the accountability and buddies to check in with! Goal setting and following through gives us such a sense of accomplishment and direction, so I hope that you will join along this month! And if these goals don't jive with you, set some of your own based on how you want your life to be! And above all, trust the Lord with all of your desires. We make plans, but God knows which path we should take and He will lead us in HIs way if we let Him, because His way is the best way! 

Happy February, y'all! 

Daily Manna: Bring on the Eats!

Good morning everyone! Can you believe it is already the end of January? I sure can't! This year is already flying by, and before we know it my husband and I will be welcoming our sweet baby girl to our family! I'm 25 weeks pregnant this week, so only a few short months left...we are so excited!

It's time for another daily manna post over here! I love doing these daily eats posts because it helps me share what I typically eat and hopefully motivates people to stay on track. BUT I also want to show that I am a real person and don't eat 100% clean 100% of the time. I nourish my body to the best of my ability, making sure I fill up on enough of the good stuff to balance out the treats! 

So on this particular day, I woke up, did my country heat workout (I'm on week 3 of the program and loving it...so pregnancy-friendly) then whipped up breakfast!

2 eggs with fruit and a side of herb flatbread I made! This is called manayeesh and it's delicious! It DID give me heartburn after though...so I guess it didn't agree with my pregnancy! :( so sad...

I got hungry soon after breakfast, which has been happening on some days! Some days I am ravenous and other days I forget to eat...but I'm trying to stay on track as much a possible! Mid morning snacks included string cheese and chopped veggies!

I bought real carrots this week instead of baby carrots and oh my, they taste so much better! I came home from the store and peeled and cut them immediately so they are just as convenient as baby carrots, but so much tastier!

Lunch time came early as well since I was dealing with the hunger beast, so I chose to embrace it! Lentils and quinoa seasoned with garlic and cumin, and a yummy salad with greens, pecans, apples, tomatoes, and a sweet onion dressing!

After lunch snackage of banana with yummy almond butter, and some sweet potato chips when I got home! 

For dinner, I whipped up some herb salmon with some veggies and potatoes! I had already cooked the potatoes in bulk Sunday (yay for meal prep!) so I just had to cook the salmon and sauté the veggies and we were good to go! I love easy weeknight dinners, and meal prep makes it possible! 

And for a late night snack, my husband and I finished off some pineapple we had before I could snap a picture...so sorry! But it was delicious!!  

It was a yummy day of eats, and I love that all of this followed my meal plan and kept me and my baby girl nourished and full! It feels SO good to put good food in our bodies! And you can do it too! The more good food you eat, the more good food you crave...trust me! ;) I hope you all have a fabulous Tuesday and eat some yummy things too! 

Meal Planning and Finding Balance

Happy Monday everyone! It's the start of a fresh week, which is always exciting in my world. Unfortunately, I am just coming out of fighting a terrible flu, so I'm still feeling a bit under the weather. I started feeling sick Thursday evening/Friday morning, and by Saturday I had a high fever. The fever finally broke, thank goodness! But the doctor wanted me to take an additional day off of work to rest and to not pass this on to any of my coworkers/patients that I work with! I'm just so grateful to be feeling better...being sick and pregnant is not fun! 

But! Good things are happening this week, one being that my January free healthy eating accountability group is off and running this morning! Accountability is the magic behind making lasting changes in our health, and it's been particularly motivating to me to get my own health into better shape, especially because I am pregnant! I haven't gained any weight during this pregnancy (baby is growing fine so my OB isn't concerned) but I also know I haven't been eating as well as I could be. 

I'm still having aversions and bouts of nausea, but overall am feeling so much better. So this week I am starting back on following a balanced and healthy portion controlled meal plan to help me ensure that I am getting all food groups in healthy amounts! The 21 day fix container system is something I followed for a while, but since getting pregnant it's been rough! But I'm back at it this week and super motivated to start eating MORE of the good foods and more balanced. I know my body (and my baby!) will thank me! I'm adjusting my meal plan to increase calories for the pregnancy, and I'm excited for finally having structure and focus again instead of eating crackers 10x/day...yea...it's happened! 

These containers are a great way to add balance and health to your plate bexnase the program tells you exactly how much to eat of which foods. You can mix and match the containers throughout the day. And the best part...it's SO much food! If you struggle with portion control, I highly recommend this program! My clients have lost weight, gotten healthier, and finally feel in control of their food choices, while not starving throughout the day! It's an easy and enjoyable way to eat healthy and start feeling better! Click here if you'd like more info on my upcoming accountability groups that follow this program...my next group kicks off February 1st! 

I'm feeling so motivated being back to this meal plan, and back to coaching in general. A big motivator for me to become a Beachbody coach again was for my OWN health and accountability. Coaching is a great way to pay it forward and help others, but it is a fantastic way to help yourself too! The motivation from my team and my clients has helped me find the drive again to take care of myself; body, mind, and soul! It's such a great feeling to have a community backing you up and motivating you to be better!

As you can tell, even though I'm sick today I am bursting with excitement for what is to come this week! What have you got going on this week? What are your health and fitness goals? I'd love to hear! Comment below and let me know! Let's MAKE IT HAPPEN this week, everyone! 

Daily Manna: belly is growing!

Hello friends! Hope everyone is having a wonderful week. Yesterday was my last day at work at my old job, and on Monday I start a new job which I'm so excited about! As many of you already know, I'm a dietitian and have been working at a dialysis unit for about 1.5 years. I just got a job at Davita, which is still in dialysis but just a bigger company! I'm excited for the new challenges and work environment and so grateful for this blessing! 

My last day at my old job was yesterday, so I have two days to chill and relax, which will probably consist of shopping, wrapping presents, cleaning, and doing some work for my private clients! I'm definitely looking forward to it! 

Let's rewind to yesterday...breakfast! I've been on an egg kick lately, which is much better than the eggo frozen waffles that got me through for my entire first trimester! I made a big dish of potatoes earlier this week which complimented my eggs nicely and made this breakfast so convenient and fast to whip up! 

It was a busy day at work trying to finish up projects and say bye to patients, so snacks consisted of a string cheese (no picture!), carrots, and a banana with a Larabar.  

My sweet coworkers planned two going away parties for me for Tuesday and Wednesday, so yesterday's meal was Panera!  

I am trying to eat less quanties more often during this pregnancy. I'm finding that if I let myself get too hungry and eat too big of a portion of any food, I'm getting nauseous after...so the half sandwich was plenty and I even did get some nausea after that :( oh pregnancy! 

We had plans to take dinner to my hubby's family tonight, so I whipped up some treats to take! I made regular Rice Krispie treats but also made some S'mores treats with Golden Grahams and chocolate chips! They were delicious (I had to taste test obvious). 

For an afternoon snack I had an apple with peanut butter which was a much better choice than Tuesday's afternoon snack! On Tuesday, I let myself get way too hungry and had two huge bowls of pub mix, which is basically like a Chex mix from Costco. I felt terrible afterwards and so uncomfortably full. I realized I had to stock up the house with healthier options, so hubby took me to the grocery store at 8:30 PM on Tuesday so we could get some fruits and veggies...thanks babe! 

I also feel like this week, my belly got bigger! It's so strange because I've just felt bloated for most of the pregnancy but now I feel like the bump is popping out! Woo!  

Dinner was pizza with salad, and then about an hour later another slice of pizza because I was still hungry! Finished the meal off with a Rice Krispie and s'mores treat! I'd say it was a successful day of balancing nourishing foods and having treats! 

I hope everyone has had a wonderful week so far! I'm off to get my morning started with some breakfast and Bible study! Happy Thursday all!  

December Goals

Weeee it's December, friends! My favorite month of the year. I absolutely love Christmas time and the anticipation of a fresh, new year! Everything just seems more magically, cozy, and warm. Don't you agree? 

I am looking forward to lots of trips to the mall, listening to Christmas music, caroling, spending time with family, friends, and church peeps, and cuddling up watching our Christmas tree with Vasken. The weather has been cold here too! Which is so nice for us So Cal peeps...I'm really enjoying wearing some fall/winter clothing! 

As is my typical custom at the first of each month, I have some goals for the upcoming month. There are many areas of my life that I want to grow in, and why not start now instead of wait till 2017? December is the new January in my opinion. 

GOALS

1. Eat at least 4 servings of vegetables and 2 servings of fruit each day. The non-pregnant me would have had no trouble with this; I used to have over 12 servings a day of fruits and vegetables! But the pregnant me is having a really hard time with fruits and vegetables. I have a huge aversion to veggies and even fruits gross me out from time to time. Pregnancy is so funky! But I am going to try my best to find ways to sneak those veggies into my day because I know that they are good for me and my growing baby! 

2. Fitness-wise, my goal is to walk walk walk! Whether that's a short 20 min walk outside or a trip to the mall, I'm going to focus on walking and light movements!

3. Reading for fun! I read a ton of personal development and business books as I am building my own private practice, but I also want to read for fun! I have a few books on my list that I've been waiting to dive into, so that will be happening this month as well! 

4. Putting my phone on airplane mode before I get into bed. This one is HUGE for me. I used to do this all the time, but lately, I have gotten into bed and just scrolled the night away on articles or social media. So my goal is to put my phone on airplane mode BEFORE getting into bed, then read or just let myself doze off without the use of an electronic! I'm already nervous about how this will go, but I'm determined to try!

5. Entrusted Bible Study. I started Beth Moore's new study on 1 & 2 Timothy and have been slowly working my way through it. I want to be more diligent with this study and spend more intentional time with God. I have realized that since my morning sickness days, my quiet time got put on the back burner as I tried to muster up the strength to get up, not throw up, and get to work. Now that I am feeling better, I want to give that time back to God. 

I feel really good about my goals for this month! I hope that you have set some personal, wellness, and life goals for yourself as well! Setting goals is one of my favorite ways to motivate myself to do the things I always tell myself I want to do. And making them public helps even more with the accountability! If you'd like, share some of your goals in the comments below!