Merry Christmas from the Austin Family 2017!

Merry Christmas!

It has been yet another busy year for us!

Chris has been a working fool this year. Okay, he works every year, but this year was exceptionally chaotic. He left Nelnet to take a contract position at ProKarma in May. Having worked as a contracter for 3 years myself, I kinda pushed him into it. Chris liked the contract position, but decided to take a position at InEight, a close partner of Kiewet, in Omaha. I was happy he found a place in Omaha he could be happy with. He is a lead UX designer for him working closely with a fair sized team, many of which are located in India. He told me at first that he may have to travel to India, but has been able to do his work with them remotely luckily. Chris continues to set his alarm for 4 something AM almost daily to hit crossfit Papio. He loves it! He also completed his SECOND 1/2 marathon this fall with a killer time!

Alivia is now a big old teenager at 13 and in the 8th grade at Papillion Middle School. Alivia is active in many things. She loves to run and ran track last spring and cross country again this fall. She did pretty well in cross country and really loves the sport. She keeps up her running with me on weekends and is in running club at school. Alivia ran her first half marathon this fall in Omaha. Chris, Alivia and I all finished together. It was a fun moment for her. When she is not running, she is still out for soccer on the Papillion Soccer Club. She has become a little more aggressive this year, which has been fun to watch. She now likes to score goals! Alivia remains quite particular with her homework, often working ahead when she can. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her close friends, playing soccer in the backyard with Asher, or taking long bike rides.

Addison is now 11 years old and in the 6th Grade at Bell. Addison is quite busy now adays teaching herself musical instruments. She is currently working on playing the ukulele. She gets on YouTube and teaches herself! She plays the guitar that way too. She does, however, take piano lessons and is quite a good piano player. It amazing us how quickly she can pick it up! Addison is very thoughtful, often making clay works or paintings for family for gifts. Thanks to Addison, we did have to recarpet the upstairs, though. No more paint in her room now. :) Addison's friend, Sidney, moved away this year, which has been hard on Addi as she transitions to the mean girl stage of middle school. Gees, girls are brutal. We are hoping it gets easier for her soon. Addi loves dogs, too, and we will get to that later.

Asher is now 10 years old and in the 4th grade at Bell. Asher plays a lot of soccer, now at the Papillion soccer club, too. We hope this is his last soccer club. I tell you, these soccer clubs around here are crazy! Asher is always on the go, rarely sitting still. He likes to jump on the trampoline, play basketball, or play soccer in the backyard with his friends. He always loves Netflix!

I had a little career change of my own in 2017, but mine did not turn out as well as Chris' did. I left Noll in May after 3 years to take a float position with CHI. I did this because I only wanted to float in one place, at Lasting Hope Recovery Center.  I loved working in one building, figuring out where everything was, and getting to know my co workers. Well, that was short lived. In November, they started floating me all over the CHI Hospitals again, just as I had done with Noll. So, I switched jobs just to be doing the same thing. The job does offer me the flexibility to select my own schedule. So, that may be hard to beat. We shall see what 2018 brings. When not working, I am just sitting on my arse at home (LOL!!). I work 2 to 3 12.5 hour night shifts a week and find little free time between running the kids to 2 schools, laundry, grocery shopping and house cleaning. But when I am not doing all that fun stuff, I still run and do BBG for strength training.

For Christmas this year, Addison only asked for a dog. We kept telling her, we already have a dog, Pippa, our Papillon. Addison said she wanted a lab, a dog she could play fetch with. After much encouragement, I caved. We adopted Coco on 12-9. Coco is a Lab, Doberman mix. She is playful like a lab but a guard dog like a doberman. We have A LOT of training ahead of us. Addi is usually the one who knows what she wants. I just hope she knows that she is going to be helping out with Coco.:)

We continued the Austin Adventures in 2017. I took a quick trip to visit my parents in Florida last January. I love Florida, especially in the winter. So this year, I am visiting my parents again, but I am bringing Addison with me. We are both looking forward to that! Over spring break last year, we took a trip to see the Grand Canyon, Sedona and Vegas. The trip was pretty but the kids were sick the entire time. I am pretty sure they will never visit the Grand Canyon again. We also took our annual trip to the Lake of the Ozarks. Chris brought friends for each kid this year over the 4th of July. That was crazy. I am not sure we will do that again, either. :). And Chris has been trying to get me to do things out of the box, like see scary movies and go camping kinda stuff. So for our anniversary, we slept in a tent and tried to hike a 14er in Colorado. I did not make it. I got elevation sickness and had to turn back. But, I am looking forward to going back and trying again. We loved visiting Aspen, too. We are already planning some fun trips in 2018.

From our family to yours, we wish you health and happiness in 2018!

Love,
Chris, Krista, Alivia, Addison, Asher, Pippa and Coco

Introducing Coco!

 

Girl Drama

Middle school is so hard. I mean the mean girls. We have found the boys to not be much better, either!

Addison is in the 6th grade. Officially, she is still in Elementary. But, she is in portables, her classrooms are separated from the school, the bell rings and they have to go to different teachers for different classes, so they are a work in progress middle school. And, the kids act like middle schoolers.

Let's be frank, Addi has some mean girls in her class. Honestly, I do not know how Addi behaves when I am not there. I only see what I see when I visit. And when I visit, these mean girls can not even fake being nice. They walk by and GIVE ME DIRTY LOOKS. Seriously. I can not even avoid the middle school girl drama.

And it is not just the girls, either. Asher had a very good friend that entered the 6th grade this year. This friend went many places with us and spent a lot of time here. He now refuses to speak to Asher. It is like he will fall off the cool planet if he speaks to a 4th grader or maybe just to Asher. I say good morning to him some mornings while walking to school and the kid looks down at his phone pretending not to hear me. I am surprised every morning he makes it to school without hitting a pole because he walks with his head in his phone, oblivious to his surroundings. Thankfully, I will not let my kids have a phone until they can prove to me they will not stare at it 24/7. And this child is the poster child for why my kids do not have phones. And, he is in fact, a mean boy now. How you can go to being my kids best friend to not speaking overnight without an explanation is insane to me.

Every day, Addi has a new story to tell about these girls doing things, bickering, bullying, leaving each other out, and just being plain hurtful. For example, I ate lunch with Addi on Asher's birthday a couple weeks ago. Addi picked a girl who is routinely picked on by others and Addi calls her a friend. When she did not select another girl to lunch, this girl went up to Addi and said, "Friends pick their friends to eat lunch with them Addi," and walked away. The very next day, this same girl had her mom visit for lunch and clearly intentionally, selected another friend to have lunch with her. So obviously the rule only applies when Addi does not invite her. Same said girl dropped the meanest look at me today. I really wanted to walk up to her and say something but I did not. I am not her parent, thankfully. I can only teach Addi to be kind to all the girls, and I hope she is. I like that she selects a girl who is maybe being picked on in school. Addi does not care if she is popular. Because let's face it, popular girls generally are not the most successful in life. So, popularity should not matter.

This is what matters.

Be kind. Be nice. Be thoughtful.

"Do unto others as you would like them to do unto you."

The Golden Rule really should be taught in middle school.

From SAHM to Working Mom

Since the kids all started school (several years ago now as Asher is in the 4th grade!), I have progressively been working more and more. This summer, Chris had a little comment that caught me off guard, something about me not working. In all fairness, I do not work much in the summer. I work my requirement of 24 hours a month then ride off to the Lake to enjoy summer with the kids. In the winter, I was working part time, or 2 12.5 hour shifts a week.

Well, this year, having taken a new job working directly with CHI (BIG mistake), I have been working closer to 3 12hr shifts per week. YIKES! Initially, I liked my job working at one CHI facility. I was just working in ONE building, so I always knew where I was going but just did not know what unit until an hour before my shift started. Then, out of the blue, they decided to have me float all over the city and into Iowa like I was doing before with Noll. Funny, they totally lied to get me hired (actually, not funny at all!). I would have never taken the job to do the same exact thing as I was doing elsewhere. I have not worked in the building I was hired to work in since before Thanksgiving. That, I hate.

I liked my job when I was just floating in one building. I kinda felt like I knew what the hay I was doing. So, since I liked it, I signed up for more shifts. I started doing one week a month pulling 3 shifts. Then I increased it to 2-3 a month. Now, I am scheduled for 4 weeks in a row full time.

I am not entirely sure what I was thinking. Now that I am floating all over the place, I no longer like my job. For example, tonight I am working. It is 4 pm. I have no idea where I will be working. I do not know what hospital, what state, or what unit. Nice, right? Nope. Not nice. I am constantly trying to rush out the door, calling to see where I am rushing to. I arrive to the unit, usually dumped with an admission waiting (because float staff get dumped on often), do my job knowing that it is different in every unit I work in. Management keeps saying, "It is the same everywhere." But that is not the case. Some units use one set of admit forms while other places do not use them. Some units chart some things while other units do not. Keeping it all straight gives me a giant headache.

So now I am left with the question. Should I keep working FT, PT or just do my minimum of 24 hours a month while I look for other employment? For one, I do not like working for someone who lies to get me employed, and then changes my job description so often I am not even sure what I am doing anymore. 

And, working FT, is very complicated. I do not sleep more than 4 hours between shifts. So, 12.5 hour shifts get quite long on no sleep. By the third night, I just stop talking to my family because I need to save energy and I am a total witch. After the third night, I get up, work out, pick up the kids, and return to bed. I am a hot mess!! I do not know how full time moms do it. I told Chris when I got pregnant with Asher, I AM NOT WORKING ANYMORE. I know my limits, and working FT and being any kind of mom is not possible for me. I just get too overwhelmed.

I am scheduled to work until Christmas break. Then, I am not sure. This float nurse is on the look out for a new home. It may just be home. :)

Asher's 10th Birthday!

On Wednesday, Asher turned 10 years old! Hard to believe that the "baby" of the family is 10! Gees! Where does the time go?


A couple weeks ago, Asher celebrated with his close friends with a sleepover movie party. We went to see the movie "Wonder" before the boys crashed in a tent in the basement. It was not as bad as I thought. Maybe working the night before and being exhausted without sleep helped me just not to hear them. :) They were actually pretty well behaved. We had pizza, cake, ice cream and donuts for breakfast. After filling the up with junk food, we sent them home. HA!


Asher's 10th Birthday Questions:
1. Favorite Color:Blue
2. Toy: Nerf Guns
3: fruit: Strawberries
4. TV show: Would be Kickin It, but Netflix pulled it, so "Flash"
5. Thing to eat for lunch: Which Wich  Turkey Sandwich
6. Outfit: Anything Nike or Under Armour
7. game: Soccer
8. snack: Popcorn
9. animal: Rattlesnake
10. song:Castle on the Hill Ed Sheeran
11. book:  Diary of the Wimpy Kid
12 best friend: Toss up between Michael and Peyton
13. cereal: Cocoa Krispies
14. favorite thing to do outside:  Play soccer or basketball
15. drink: Rootbeer
16. Holiday: Christmas
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night: He shouldn't, but he does take his ipad to bed with him! Asher says his 2 snakes.
18. Favorite thing to eat for breakfast: Daddy's full breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon and hashbrowns.
19. Birthday dinner: Baked chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, fruit, and chocolate pudding cake
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A home builder...??


Asher is our dare devil, soccer loving, active boy. When he is not running around with his endless energy and odd sense of humor or yelling Mom, you can find him watching Netflix. For his birthday, he got his room redone, soccer themed. We wanted the walls Dorian Gray, got him a new desk, lamp, chair, posters and he was good to go. He will get more for Christmas to make his room complete.


Happy Birthday Asher!

18th Wedding Anniversary

In August, Chris and I celebrated 18 years of marital bliss (lol). We went to dinner, of course, but that is not enough for me. Ha. So, Chris decided to take me camping. Not glamping, camping...you know, in a tent. I have NEVER spent the night in a tent except at a birthday party as a kid (and it was freezing and I hated it).

We went to Colorado, 1 hour from Aspen, and spent 2 nights in a tent near Twin Lakes. Chris had this big goal to hike Mt. Elbert. Well, first, he forgot to acclimate. Kinda important. We got to the campground on Friday, attempted to hike Mount Elbert the next morning after suffering from shortness of breath during the night due to the elevation (and freezing half to death because it was in the 30s!). We hiked 7 hours in all, nearly reaching the top, before my body gave out. I was dizzy, nauseated, had edema, and thought I was going to die. Seriously, I had no idea how I was going to get down the mountain. Oh, and get this, 10 minutes into my hike, the hiking shoes I had borrowed from my mom fell apart one by one. First the left sole started to fall off, then the right, then they both completely fell off leaving my in slippers to hike a mountain. Insanity. NEVER AGAIN. I am super cheap but I will be buying hiking shoes before my next trip with Chris. :)

Sunday, after our Saturday of fun, we tore down our camp and took the scenic drive to Aspen. It was beautiful. Aspen was beautiful too. We had an amazing breakfast at Aspen Over Easy (you have to try the fresh juice!),  yummy frozen yogurt and then the best pizza ever at Taster's Pizza (I would go back for the pizza alone!). We stayed at a really nice hotel that felt mom and pop like. (Hotel Durant).  Overall, we loved Aspen, just wished we could have been there longer than one night. Monday morning (Labor Day), we flew out of bed to go on a quick 4 mile run. It was freezing, completely dark (clearly Aspen does not believe in street lights) and many odd males wondering the dark streets alone. I was so thankful Chris decided to get a few miles in with me.

We had an amazing quick weekend getaway. The worst part...the stupid drive (see, I did not say getting elevation sickness!), and the best part was all of Aspen. Seriously, if I had a million or 2 dollars, I would buy a condo in Aspen.

Until next year...

August in Review

We are nearly into mid September and I am just getting around to August. Oops.

August flew by! Seriously. 

We finished up our summer fun by getting in as many activities as possible. We got a few pool estimates and still can not decide if we want to put our money into an inground pool. Chris and I celebrated 18!! years of marriage. And, my favorite part, Chris and I started weekly date nights. Seriously, I look forward to them every week. And my least favorite, I went back to work. Ugh. I enjoyed working very little so much. All good things have to come to an end.

Alivia started 8th grade at PMS (yes, that is what they call it), while Addison is in her last year of Elementary (6th grade) and Asher is in the 4th grade. So far so good. Addison had to say good-bye to her BFF Sidney. I cried my eyes out for her. It was so sad.

Chris and I ended the month with dinner for our anniversary. We are loving our new found date nights. It has forced me to go buy clothes other than running gear and the scrubs I wear to work. I know, crazy. I have found a new found love for shopping for...ME!!

The end. Now onto September. About time now that it is September 12!

Addison's 11th Birthday

Birthday Questions answered by a 11 year old Addison
1. Favorite  color: Purple
2. Favorite Toy: Pottery Wheel
3. Favorite Fruit: peaches
4. Favorite TV show: America's got Talent 
5. Favorite thing to eat for lunch: Coby Jack and Salami sandwich
6. Favorite Outfit:  Red, white and blue Nike capris and tshirt outfit.
7. Favorite Game:  Clue
8. Favorite Snack:  Animal Crackers
9. Favorite Animal:  Dog
10. Favorite song:  The House that Built me
11. Favorite Book:  Arf
12. Best Friend: Sidney
13. Favorite Cereal: Cocoa Puffs
14. Favorite thing to do outside: Go on Jumpy water slide
15. Favorite drink:  Mello Yellow
16. Favorite Holiday: Christmas
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night?  Bean Bag
18. Favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Cinnamon toast and cereal
19. What do you want to eat for your birthday dinner? Hot Dogs, Mashed Potatoes, Corn.
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? Not sure now.

Addison selected to celebrate her birthday at the lake with her friend Sidney instead of having a party...so that is just what she did. 8 Fun filled days at the lake. The girls never had an argument. They were super sweet the entire time. It was amazing.

Addi is a dog lover, art lover, who spends a lot of time in her room. She is amazingly good at the piano, and we rarely have to remind her to practice. It is refreshing. She may not like sports of any kind, but she will walk the dog whenever asked. She dreams of getting a Labrador retriever. Addi loves to sport Nike or Under Armour capri pants instead of shorts but will wear shorts with much encouragement. Addi is a strong willed girl but is very sweet.

Although fun to see Addison grow up...so sad to say good-bye to our baby girl.

The Lake 2017

Since we took our family vacation over spring break, it gave us more freedom to get to the lake as a family. Chris got to join us this year!!

Addi, Asher, Addi's friend Sidney, and I drove to the lake on Thursday, June 29 staying through Friday, July 7. Addi did not want a birthday party with a bunch of friends this year, she just wanted her friend Sidney to go to the lake with us. Done. Chris and Alivia joined us with Alivia's friend Katy and Asher's friend Conner July 1-5 (Alivia stayed until July 7 with me though). Talk about craziness! 6 kids at the lake is crazy!! The food, the chaos! WE WILL NOT DO THAT AGAIN!!!

The kids enjoyed tubing on Grandma's latest toy, a 3 person jet ski he bought from his neighbor that moved away. It is very nice. It was super nice to be able to pull the kids on the tube behind it, too. Chris brought a nice 3 person tube from Costco. The kids had a blast on that, too. Gotta have a new toy every year. I swear next year I will get a platform. Really, I mean it (Well, unless Chris puts a pool in our backyard...then never mind).

Conner and Katy tried water sking, Alivia skied again while Asher skied and got up for a short while. Hopefully he will ski again on our next trip later this month.

Chris got out the canoe and we all took peaceful canoe rides with him. Chris and my Dad got up at 5:30 daily to chase the sunrise on the jet skis. Chris got some fun GoPro footage of those rides, too. We did a little boating to see the big houses on the lake. The kids ate us out of the house. Grandma was a pro at serving them I tell you. Grandma and Grandpa left Thursday and I was not as efficiant without them, that is for sure!

We took all 6 kids to the candy store. Chris bought candy and souvineers for all over them. Addi, Sidney and I went to the outlets and did a little back to school shopping. Those girls like shopping way more than I do!!

We had an amazing time. Sadly, both Addison and Asher's friends will probably move away this year (milatary). It was fun for the kids to spend quality time with their friends before they move.

My Mom and Dad are amazing hosts. Thank you!! We love the lake. We missed it the second we left.

We will be back...sooner than later. I am thinking next week!

Whole30: After

Well, Chris and I successfully finished our whole30 on June 30. Chris did not weigh himself before, during or after...so who knows?!?! I did not weigh myself in the end because I was out of town but lost 4 pounds perviously. I am sure I am back to my normal weight now. :)

So day 1 off of whole30 I stuck to the whole 30. Then Chris joined me at the lake bringing snacks. I had the chips I bought from Costco 2 days in a row. I did not notice any side effects per say...but did notice better energy on my runs the next day (keep in mind I was not eating much in the way of carbs at this point due to not tolerating sweet potatoes or acorn squash). The third day I ate Costco Chocolate Chip cookies. OMG these were so good. So I ate whole30 all day and had 2 cookies for dessert at dinner. I, again, did not notice any side effects, but went to bed shortly after eating them. The next morning, my stomach was sore during my run. I can not have gluten and it was obvious. Since then, I have had the same pop chips every day and had a chocolate chip larabar. Yesterday I was whole30 except the larabar. I realize I do not need the chips, I just love them. :) Unfortunately, we have 3 LARGE Costco sized bags of them at home and the kids do not like them. Chris, there are chips for you!

Chris and I both agreed that the whole30 was like food prison. We were less happy in the same bubble of foods we could eat. Having kids and eating like that is pretty difficult, in my opinion. With that said, I will try to eat mostly whole30, maybe 80/20 or better. So far I have been eating whole30 with one new thing added in daily. Today's chocolate chip larabar tasted like heaven. It tasted amazing. My chipotle chicken salad (where the chicken was the only non compliant thing) last night was amazing. I have not had pizza yet as I am dreading the side effects. But, I have gotten to not enjoy pizza anymore anyway for that reason.

Both Chris and I have stuck with our eggs for breakfast. Lunch I started eating romaine lettuce wraps with no sugar added turkey from Costco (called plainville turkey slices I believe). Just turkey wrapped in lettuce with salt and pepper and mustard. I started eating this in the last days of whole30 and have continued to eat these wraps. I like them! Great thing to take to lunch at work, too. Dinner is usually whole 30 compliant, too.

Overall, I would recommend whole30. But it is VERY STRICT and probably has a poor success rate. Chris failed on several occasions and should have started over (but he would have just quit and not started over so we let his slip up slide).

Wanna try Whole30? I wanna hear what you think!

Whole30: Final week!

OMG we are inches so close to the end of our final Whole30 we can taste it. ;)

Already, I am starting to prep for our upcoming vacation and stocking up on non whole30 items. Not like we are going to go crazy...but I did buy some pop chip type things at Costco that I want to try. Honestly, I really do not know what I will do differently. I am a very habitual eater. Very. I like to eat the same things over and over once I find something I like. Whole30 has led me to find new favorites to eat over and over. :) My new thing...LEMON LARABARS! They are great to eat at work when I have very little time to eat. They are to die for!

Breakfast: I am sticking with my egg whites, watermelon and coffee. I do not care what people say, watermelon is the bomb. It is mostly water...so I am not giving it up. I balance it with other fruits like my mix of strawberries and blueberries.

Lunch: I keep lunch simple with canned salmon (not as gross as it sounds but not the best either), vegetables and fruit. If I am very lazy I have more egg whites. They are full of protein so a great addition. And, after 4 years of eating them, I am still not sick of them.

Dinner: Shrimp, chicken of some sort or salmon. I am very bored with dinner. I do love my grilled sweet potatoes for dinner. I have decided I can not stomach acorn squash. I believe it messes me up. I have eaten it a few times and got very bloated and uncomfortable. NOT WORTH IT!

Snacks: Larabars. I have tried to eliminate the morning snack. BUT, I just can't. I run at 5am, eat breakfast before 7am so I am hungry by 10. Sometimes I cross train, too, after running and after breakfast. Honestly, I would be better off having almonds or something over a larabar. But, I like my larabars.

This week I leave on vacation on Thursday. Chris will meet me on the 1st. I am sad we can not celebrate together. I am hoping. I will not be probably taking a complete after weight, either. Honestly, I do not think I lost any weight. I may have to start with, then I gained it back as I figured out what to eat. I do not think eating on vacation will be too bad since we are staying at my parents lake home, cooking our own food, etc.

On day 24...the end is near.

Benefits:
Energy is steadily getting better.
Skin is better

Cons:
No tiger blood yet.
Still feel like I am missing something
Date nights are not the same when we cook our meals at home

 Day 26!
I can see the end...we are almost there!
Tiger blood may be near. I ran with my running mate this morning with paces in the 7:20s and I did not die. There were strikes of lightening chasing us mind you, so perhaps that was it??? Anyway, I felt much better. I did feel like I was dying trying to do my BBG Leg workout later, but whatever. I will take running and not falling apart at this point.

That was the good news. Bad news...the sweet potatoes and the acorn squash are killing me. So I googled it. Neither are good for IBS which I have. Excellent. Seriously, I feel like death after eating them. It does not take long either and my stomach is in so much pain I can not move. I had a potato before the pool last week and looked pregnant at the pool (nice right?!). I usually eat them at night, but who wants to feel like that at night either? Sadly, I can not be eating them. I have a couple left that Asher will help me finish off. Then it is back to the other vegetables that are not as carb filled. Sad day for this runner girl.

I weighed myself today because I will be working tomorrow night (so will not weigh Wednesday for sure), and I leave Thursday to the lake. Our last day is Friday so I should weigh Saturday. I am not taking a scale to the lake. So...this is it. Looks like I lost 4 pounds. I guess I had that to lose. Honestly, this is my "heavy" part of the month, too. I am shocked actually. It will not take me long to gain that back though. Honestly, I can not tell. My clothes pretty much fit the same. I must have lost 2 pounds per breast. I am sure I lost the weight in the first couple weeks and just maintained it the last 2 weeks because I am eating A LOT!

Favorite food now: Lemon Larabars!! OMG YUM! I will be eating them at work while watching my peers eat cookies and pizza. I am not kidding. These are amazing and a must try. Again, Larabars are discouraged on the whole30...But they are better than eating, I don't know, A COOKIE!! I eat my protein, veggie first THEN my Larabar. I don't care because they are amazing.

Today we ate out for the first time since June 4. I wanted to take the kids out to lunch to see Chris, where he works now, etc. We ate at McAlister's Deli. Chris and I both got Garden Salads. I left starving. It was not worth my craving to eat out. I came home, ate some watermelon and a half of lemon larabar. I need chicken. :)

Nough said. Just a few more days. We can do this!!

Day 29

Quick post bc I am off to the LAKE!! So excited!
 Down to just a couple of days.

Benefits:
Leaner body
Don't have to count calories (I don't do this anyway)
Eat healthy
Clearer skin (Except during hormonal periods like now...seems worse!!).

Cons:
Feel sad a lot
Date nights are not the same
Social situations can be a nightmare
LOTS of cooking and cleaning up!!
Lots of shopping

Overall, I am happy we did the whole30. I would not, however, do it again. Seriously, the first 20 some days were that bad. If I was not working out or running it would have been much easier. BUT, I do work out and run. Therefore, no I would not do it again. I would encourage others to give it a go if they need to clean up their diets and hope to lose some weight. My diet was not THAT bad before and I did not have weight to lose but I am part of a team (and Chris' diet needed a refresher!). I will update when we are DONE! YEAH!! Not sure what is next...but I am looking forward to it!!

Whole30 Week 3

Week 3! Days 15-21

OMG We are half way!!

After feeling like death a couple days ago (and honestly a little yesterday), today is much better. I ran with only stopping a couple times. I ran a slower pace, but it is progress. I will probably feel like poo again after working tonight, but I can't do anything about it.

Today I got up before dawn and got 6 miles in, car pooled Alivia, picked up Chris' Father's Day gift, picked up some prescriptions, all before 8:15. Got home and walked the dog. Yikes, it was hot already. That is pretty much going to be my day. I will shower and take a nap. Asher was asked to go out with a friend, Addi is still at the Lake, and Alivia in in Catholic Ed. I am sure my nap will be short, very short. I am just hoping to get home honestly.

Breakfast: Same (sorry, I love it), eggs, watermelon
Snack: Mini larabar.
Lunch: Not sure. I may eat when I wake up from my nap. More eggs possibly.
Dinner: Salmon, sweet potato, strawberries.

I have my 1 protein (chicken breast), 2 fruits and 2 vegetables packed for my 13 hours at work. I did not get hungry last time so let's hope for the same this time! Day 15 out!

Day 20!
I missed several days due to work, then a serious storm hit us and we were without power from Friday evening to Monday evening! Talk about challenging whole30. It would have been so easy to just order Jimmy Johns or Papa Johns delivery during that time. Instead, we luckily have a gas stove and a outdoor grill where we did our cooking and chilled our food in numerous coolers. Serious nightmare. Thankfully, we are back on and still on (some got power and then lost it again. :( ).

Still eating about the same thing. My larabars have gone up some because a lot of our food we threw out. The first day Chris lived on larabars, not kidding. We went to the local grocery store to get breakfast (and black coffee) and they had just got their power back on and were throwing out food. So, we missed breakfast. By noon, we figured we can just lite our stove and ate breakfast. Luckily, we made it work and did not resort to trying to eat out. Chris has a business meeting today and has to eat out. We shall see how that goes.

Good news! By day 15-16, I got my energy back on my runs! Seriously, that took long enough. Today I walked the dog 3 miles and got hot, and my BBG workout was sluggish. I feel weak and sick now post workout. Hoping my run tomorrow goes better now that I can get my food back on track.

Breakfast: Eggs, watermelon and blueberries.
Lunch: Egg whites, acorn squash, strawberry/blueberry mix
Dinner: Grilled chicken breast, grilled sweet potatoes (I just cut them into cubes, place in foil and grill with Chris' chicken (he eats legs and thighs so it takes longer. Add salt and pepper and easy and amazing! I need the energy for my running, too!).

As we approach the end of the third week, I do not think I have lost any weight. I did not have any to lose any really anyway. I feel like I am eating a lot more food than I am used to but do not feel as energetic. Chris and I have discussed post whole30. We do plan to add dairy probably first. I will try and eat breakfast, lunch and dinner (where I was just eating yogurt and fruit before for lunch with my favorite gluten free chips or crackers). We will just have to see.

Day 21: 3 weeks in!!

Breakfast: Egg whites, watermelon, black coffee
Lunch: Egg whites, acorn squash, strawberries/blueberries
Dinner: Shrimp, grilled sweet potato, watermelon/blueberries

Went to the second movie on th whole30, this time in a bistro theater. Seriously, that was cruel. All the yummy food that we had to look at. I can care less about popcorn. We went to a later movie. Honestly, I may not have eaten anything anyway (maybe just had an Ice to drink)..

I ran this morning with my typical running mate. I felt a little better. She is speedy, and I was able to hold my own for the most part. Luckily I am not training for anything at the moment. Still need to decide on next races (and I hope to add back more carbs for that!). Chris and I are not feeling the tiger blood yet, though. Still tired a lot. I have decreased my workouts due to less energy. I think whatever weight I've lost is minimal 2-3 pounds tops (which will quickly come right back), and I am still not my energetic self.  I have not had any known cheats. Yesterday was hard, though. I wanted chocolate so bad. The kids had candy from the candy store (Addi got at the lake) all spread out on the counter. I could smell the chocolate. So cruel. Chris does cheat. He has little cheats every day (found out he is making his scrambled eggs with a little milk! He is allergic to milk, too!). I believe his lunch out yesterday was successful. We have 9 days left! OMG!!!! So exciting!! Chipotle for our reward. I will get a chicken salad! I can not wait!!

Still unsure what I will do after the 30 days. At this point, I know I'll add back 1 greek yogurt per day for sure. I also know I will add gluten free crackers. From there, I am not sure. I love pizza, but I am not supposed to eat it due to my gluten sensitivity. I try to have a piece of only good pizza when I can because come on, pizza is SO GOOD!

The countdown to the end has started (or wait, I have been counting down to the end since the beginning!).

Our Crazy Summer

The kids got out of school on May 25, Alivia's birthday. We had Memorial Day Weekend, then it's been very busy ever since.

Week 1:
Alivia had cross country camp all week at the high school. She loved it.  Meanwhile Asher had Creighton Soccer Camp. He loves that every year. On June 1, I started a new job. Well, kinda new. I started working for CHI. I will be working at ONE hospital instead of working for the agency and floating all over. I negotiated a good salary so that I did not take a pay cut. After my quick orientation on the first, I did not work again until the 11th (Long story I will not get into. It is just a good thing I don't NEED to work, right?). Addison started to get annoyed that everyone was gone all the time.

Week 2:
Alivia started to go to cross country conditioning at the high school every morning at 7am. I pick her up at 740 (although it goes until 8:30) and drive her to Catholic Ed. I home schooled Addi and Asher this year (another long story. Let's just say the book is $20 but the cost of Catholic Ed is $130, which is more than double what it was when Liv started and more than double what my friends pay in Omaha. That made Alivia go because she gets confirmed next Spring. I am looking into other options for Addi and Asher). Anyway, Liv is in Catholic Ed until noon. Monday through Thursday, Liv then went to soccer camp at the high school. Meanwhile, Asher was going to soccer try out training. I was beginning to think I was living in my car and very thankful I was not working. Addison, well, she stayed in her room most of the week. In the afternoons we went to the movies Tuesday, the Dentist Wednesday, and Addi had piano Thursday. By Thursday, Addi was frustrated. I asked to take her to the pool, but she said, "We have been gone all week!" She then decided she would go to the lake with my parents this week. We did go to the pool on Saturday (convincing Addi to go) finally.

Week 3 (current week).
Liv is in her second and final week EVER of Catholic Ed. She is continuing to go to cross country conditioning in the mornings. I can not believe she is getting up that early EVERY WEEKDAY MORNING! Asher is in the midst of soccer try outs. He is only trying out for one team, so we are hoping this works out! Addison left Monday morning for the Lake. She is on the boat right now having a picnic lunch with her Grandparents. That is what summer is all about! Liv is shopping with Chris' mom this afternoon. Asher is watching a movie with his friend. Tomorrow I work. So the afternoon I will somehow take a nap. Always a challenge. I do not work much in the summer for very good reasons. I CAN'T SLEEP!

Week 4 will finally be free. I can hardly wait. We can go to the zoo, the forest, hit the pool and plan our trip to the lake! Yeah! Oh, I do work 2 nights next week sans the sleep again and the sugar in my diet (really, try and stay awake all night without sugar! I downed a lot of coffee to keep my eyes open!).

Hope your summer is as fun as ours. Gotta make note, because some day I will miss this.

Whole30 Week 2

Yeah, we survived the first week. Barely. Seriously, that was rough.

What we learned from week one.
*Whole30 requires a lot of planning. Planning our meals in advance has helped. Chris is not so good about this and gets hungry. I can not go hungry.
* Whole30 requires a lot of shopping. We are a family of 5. It is a lot of shopping! I run out of things so quickly.
*Have whole30 ready snacks on hand. I used to snack in the morning and afternoon. I am better about snacking. I am eating more protein at breakfast so I am not hungry mid morning. Afternoons I am eating a larabar. Perhaps they are not that good if you have options, but they are really good when they are your only option. I have been eating the apple pie while Chris takes either apple pie or banana bread. The cashew cookie is really good too (waiting on my Amazon shipment of these today!).
*For me, this is a lot of food! The breakfast and dinner are really not that much different than I was eating. But, I am so hungry by dinner that I eat and eat. Last night I had 10 minutes to eat. I probably ate too fast and was nauseated while carting my kids around to their evening activities. I have been spending 90% of my time in the car, so I do not have time for eating slow.

Pros:
*Better body image at this point.
*Better sleep at night.

Cons:
Cooking
Cooking clean up
The shopping
Lack of energy while exercising (this is improving but I have a ways to go yet).
Starting to break out on my face (but it is summer and so that could be it I don't know).

I have not seen much of Chris due to kids activities, and he does not say much about how things are going. He does not complain other than to say, "Throwing in a mini pizza would cut a lot of time out here." I can tell you if we were not doing whole30, the kids would be living on mini pizzas and hotdogs because we are not home much.

I can tell I have lost weight or my weight has been distributed differently. My arms look weak and frail in the mirror. Not really what I am going for. But, I also feel weak and frail so maybe that is it. I eat WAY more protein in a day and I think I am eating WAY more food without being hungry. Since Chris is usually hungry, he has probably lost a fail amount of weight. When we did Paleo 3 years ago, he lost nearly 20 pounds in a month. HE IS NOT A BIG GUY! If he lost 20 pounds this time he would weight less than 150 pounds on his 5' 9" muscular body. We can not have that. On Paleo, I only lost 3 pounds, but I do not carry any extra weight.

Day 8

My 7 mile run and ab workout (OMG that was killer) was better but I am still lacking the energy prior to whole30. I ran alone today (my friend is getting sick of me stopping all the time probably), but my music helped a little. The last couple runs I have been getting really bad side aches. I am a marathoner...I never get side aches. Very annoying. I am able to walk the dog with way my pep in my stride now though, at least today.

Breakfast: Lots of egg whites with coconut oil, watermelon.
Lunch: Leftover chicken breast, sweet potato, handful of strawberries (if the kids haven't eaten them already).
Afternoon snack: Apple pie larabar
Dinner: Thinking salmon, veggies, frozen bananas and watermelon. I am really getting tired of protein and veggies. Tonight we really will not have time to eat again due to kids activities. In the past I would have made a smoothie and called it good. It is hard for me to have time to cook AND eat it!

Day 9. Lethargy, light headed.
Very tired.
I did get up and run this morning, but I skipped cross training and mowed the lawn instead. I am very tired. Not sure if it is from Chris waking me at 4am for weeks (to go to Crossfit) or I am just tired. I had dreams that I cheated on the whole30 and decided not to start over. It was like I was making brownies and ate some crumbs or something. Seriously, I am now dreaming of food?

Breakfast: Eggs whites, strawberries and watermelon, coffee
AM Snack: I'm hungry today, feel weak. So cashew cookie larabar mini served it's purpose followed by a handful of plain almonds.
Lunch: Eggs again (bc I am lazy), sweet potato, few frozen grapes
Dinner: I suggested going to Panera for a salad that we could not eat most of. Chris was like, um, no. So, shrimp, grilled veges it is. Ugh. In the end, I ended up eating yet MORE EGGS and a little fruit. I had zero appetite. My stomach was churning after my lunch of veggies. We watched Netflix and went to bed early. We really wanted to quit today.

Honestly, meals are boring. I'm bored. SO FREAKING BORED. I am working Sunday night (for the first time in 3 weeks!) and am really worried I am going to get really hungry at work. I am not even sure what to bring to eat. So, I have decided to eat dinner very early (I leave for work at like 5:30pm). Then eat another meal at midnight if I am lucky. I get off at 7am. Not sure I can make it until then with just a larabar. See? It is a lot of hours with just one meal in the middle. I plan on bringing a larabar, almonds, fruit, sweet potato or squash and some form of protein (probably another chicken breast). I usually just snack all night because my stomach gets very upset at night. So, this will be very interesting. I am dreading it for so many reasons.

Day 10

Busy Day! I got up at my normal 5am and ran 7 miles, cross trained abs, walked the dog all before eating breakfast at 8am. At 8:30 it was off to soccer practice. We chilled until hitting up the pool this afternoon. Now I miss snacking at the pool. Honestly, I usually brought grapes anyway. But sometimes I would bring Gluten free snacks like nut thins or something.  Today, eating wise, I was not as nauseated as I was yesterday. I still am running to the bathroom a lot, but I am sleeping through the night now (I sound like a baby). Tomorrow night I head back to work. My food will be really wacky as I eat all day and all night since I am up for 24 hours with only a brief nap (Be nice to your night nurse!).

Breakfast: Egg whites, fruit, black coffee
Snack: Mini cashew cookie larabar.
Lunch: Eggs again (Can one live on eggs alone?), sweet potato, strawberries
Snack: Mini cherry? I think Larabar (I was at the pool with the kids. This is not a good snack).
Dinner: LOTS of shrimp, acorn squash, few watermelon.

I am very full after meals. I have to admit, I usually was only full after dinner previously. I am eating more egg whites than before, but admittedly this is the breakfast I have eaten for 3 years. I do not get bored of egg whites. YUM! I know, I am odd. I wish I could take them to work somehow. I bet they would smell awful reheated.

The kids are eating much better but not sticking with whole30. They are all eating more fruits, vegetables and protein as they are eating what we eat most meals. They hate it though. They miss pizza. I did fix them organic chicken nuggets today because I had nothing prepared to feed them because I was gone all morning. They complained less. Chris skipped lunch, saying there was nothing to eat. He had banana larabar.

I know we are probably having too much fruit. It is not replacing sugar for us, just filling our plates and stomachs. I can not lose weight, and I need energy to run. I feel like I have lost weight because my chest is flatter if at all possible. Sigh.

Day 11

Back to work tonight! SCARY!! I am taking a houseful of food! I have prepared steamed cauliflower, acorn squash and watermelon. For snacks I have almonds and larabars on hand. I recall starving at work when we did the first 30 days of paleo. Now I need to figure out what to bring for protein! I miss my Greek Yogurt! I baked a couple large chicken breasts for lunch so will probably take the left overs. The kids are totally bored with our meals, and I am too.

Breakfast: The usual egg whites, fruit, no coffee so I can take in prep for working.
Snack: Mini cashew cookie larabar
Lunch: Chicken breast, rainbow califlower, raspberries.
Dinner: Egg whites, sweet potato, fruit.

Night snack: Larabar mini. (remember, I am working 6:30 PM to 7am. There are a lot of meals in there. I am going to go with one meal at maybe 1-2 if I have time to heat it. Probably eat the chicken and vege then. If I get hungry I have watermelon, almonds or larabars to snack on. I am sure I will be too tired to prepare anything in the morning so will just go to bed. I do have to run my daughter a couple places before I can nap. YEAH. I am sure I will want to do that!).

Tonight at work will be the trick. I always bring snacks because there is not a lot of time always to eat. I will miss my rice krispy treats or rice rollers, grape laffy taffy (yes, I always take these to work), and my little baggie of gluten free crackers or chips. I will miss it all. I totally miss chocolate STILL. I may be full after meals but I am far from satisfied. It is annoying.

Day 12/13

So I kinda survived my first night back to work but I seem to be paying a pretty heavy price today. I took 2 veges, one fruit, nuts, 2 mini larabars and a chicken breast. I ate all of it. I had to do some car pooling after work before I crashed. We had storms at lunch time (dog freaked out) and Liv got home from Catholic Ed (thank goodness for carpool!) so I was up at 12:30. I made sure the kids (Liv and Asher because Addi is at the Lake with her Grandparents) had lunch. I knew I could not go back to sleep without eating so I fixed an egg, watermelon. After eating, I fell asleep to Netflix. I woke up at 4 and knew I needed to try and do at least BBG legs. Ugh. I drug myself downstairs to do it. No energy. I was zapped.
Dinner was grilled chicken thighs. Asher and I thought they were good, Chris ate one. Normally he would eat at least 2. Not sure if he is sticking to the plan because I am not seeing him eat at all. He is not eating good anyway because while I was at work Asher told me he had a larabar, watermelon and some pistachios for dinner.  Anyway, I also ate a sweet potato before enjoying more House of Cards on Netflix.

Today. I tried to run. I was lethargic, drained, heavy legs, just a mess. It did not go well. It was hot, in the 70s, at 5am so that did not help either. I somehow got home. I really have no idea how. I am a total mess. I ate my egg breakfast but don't have an appetite. Following my run, my chest hurts right below my left breast. I tried walking it off by walking the dog. Nope, still there. I suffered through an easier 9 minute BBG challenge, but the pain is still there. If only we had insurance that covered anything I may see a Dr. But I don't, so today I am going to rest some and hope tomorrow is better.

Breakfast: Eggs, watermelon, coffee
Snack: Mini cashew cookie larabar (did not help my chest pain). I know I am eating too many larabars. But, I need the calories. I just am so weak!
Lunch: Chicken breast, sweet potato, raspberries
Dinner: Shrimp, another sweet potato (I made Chris red potatoes. Asher ate them, Chris just smelled one. UGH), raspberries.
Snack: Another mini larabar (again, I don't care! It is not a cupcake!).

We are inching closer to the halfway mark. At this point, I am dying. I think eating this way is depressing. I have zero energy.

Day 14:
OMG we are almost halfway. By we I mean I am. I am not totally sure Chris is 100% in the whole30. Actually, I know he isn't. The kids have told me of 3 cheats (a chocolate chip larabar - contains added sugar, and 2 gararades containing 36g of SUGAR EACH! Seriously). I have no cheated that I am aware of, but have dreams of cheating (that's an issue I think. I should not be dreaming of food).

Yesterday was horrible. I continuted to have this weird chest pain all day. I ran a few errands with the kids. Otherwise we stayed at home and I did laundry while they played. (Addi remains at the lake with her Grandparents).

Today it was storming when it was morning run time. So, I slept another 45 minutes or so, then got up at did BBG arms before breakfast. I went to get Alivia from cross country conditioning at 7:40, drove her to Catholic Ed, before returning home to complete working out. I then did a Hasfit kickboxing workout. That was a fun change for me. I was able to get through both workouts. I do not have my energy back, but I was able to complete them. Tomorrow I go back for another night at work. I will try and get up in the morning to run but I will not cross train. I hope my run goes better. I have Friday off running since I will be working overnight.

I have learned to eat a lot of protein, that is for sure. I am guessing my protein is about 30-35% of my day versus maybe 20-25% before whole30. The greek yogurt I was eating offers up some protein but not as much as a chicken breast or a large portion of egg whites. Still, I prefer the yogurt, I'm not going to lie. And yesterday, the kids got ice cream. It totally killed me to watch them eat it. It was so hot and muggy and the ice cream looked perfect. Believe it or not, Asher did not eat his and put it in the freezer where it remains now. Sigh.

Breakfast: Same egg whites, watermelon, coffee. I probably should have veggies at breafast but I like my eggs plain and just do not feel like adding sweet potato hash or something to my breakfast.
Lunch: More egg whites (Asher asked if egg whites were that good for you? They are not bad, offer good protein, and offer me up a quick lunch when I was already cooking him lunch of leftover chicken thighs, left over potatoes and a cutie).
Dinner: Chicken breast (and legs for Chris and Asher who prefer them), baked sweet potato, strawberriy/blueberry/orange/raspberry salad.
Snack: Mini apple larabar.

Tomorrow will be the 3 week mark and the half way point!! Yippee!!

PS I miss baking, chocolate and ice cream. I am not fat nor am I overweight, so I am looking forward to treating myself occasionally with these things. I suppose I can eat less candy. I miss candy but I know now I definitely do not need it.

Check here for week 1.
Check here for week 3.

The Whole30 Challenge

Week One:

Today, June 1, marks day one of our Whole30 challenge. We are making it a family affair. With that said, the Whole30 is flexible for the kids and not flexible for Chris and I. Why?

In January, Chris said he needed to eat better. He had me buy all paleo foods. He ate good until January 3, then went back to his normal ways. I was not going to eat Paleo. So, that did not help him.

Chris has had a challenging 2017. His job was extremely toxic, he was job hunting, stressed, and then got a new job. Fast forward to today. His depressed eating patterns have continued. He may have gained some weight (although he carries it better than I would if I gained weight) but it is more about his eating being an example for our kids and keeping healthy now that we are in our 40's. He got up at 4:15 one morning, went to crossfit at 5, came back and ate chocolate chip cookies for breakfast. Not kidding. Alivia, who is the least healthiest eater, eats her fair share of chocolate chip cookies, too. A few hours into Whole30, Alivia had goldfish crackers after cross country camp. I have to remember, she is a 13 year old very active girl who is a very selective eater. She is not going to do well with this challenge at all.

Today we ate eggs, bacon and fruit for breakfast. Lunch was more of a challenge because I was at work and Grandma was here. She made Asher a hamburger (with just mustard and no bun) with watermelon, strawberries mix. Alivia had a turkey meat taco salad that we pre made (basically lettuce, tomatoes and meat with my approved spices), and my mom said Addi had fruit and complained a lot. Nice. :) I am sure my mom thinks I am crazy and being cruel.I had a chicken salad, fruit and vegetables. I was content but not satisfied. I missed my rice roller, chips, chocolate, etc.

By afternoon snack time, the kids and I were invading the fruit. I know, we are to limit our fruit intake. BUT WE ARE HUNGRY!! I can not imagine what Chris will be like when he gets home. He packed larabars, banana and maybe some apples. He did not even pack a salad. He said he had a big breakfast (at 630 am!). Alivia has a soccer game at 5:45. So we are not even sure what time we will get dinner (the game is 545 to 7 on the schedule. UGH!). The plan is shrimp and grilled vegetables.

Chris did his 5am crossfit class and I cross trained for 70 minutes (a 40 minute hasfit and the 28 min bbg). Running rest day today for me. Tomorrow I hope to get a nice run in.

I miss sugar. Tomorrow will be better...I hope.

Whole 30 Day 5 

I clearly need to do more research. Like what to expect when on Whole30. Gees. Friday I ran and felt like I was going to die. Saturday I got up early and do not recall feeling too crappy on my run (but I have the whole30 brain fog, so I'm not sure). I ran 6 miles before 6:15. An hour later was at a soccer game. I really do not recall feeling too bad, tired, lethargic, but not overly so.

Yesterday we celebrated my Mom's 70th birthday. Think eating out, cupcakes and icecream. Seriously. Chris got chicken plain and I had a salad where I asked for most of it to be excluded. My dry salad was disgusting but I ate it. Chris and I have both been really dizzy, light headed, so I have been trying to drink a lot today. It is very hot here, so perhaps that is it? I also have been sweating on my runs (which I do not normally do), so perhaps that is it? Who knows.

Today I tried running with my friend at 5am. Tried. I was dying. Not kidding. I was miserable. I wished someone could come and get me. I stopped every few feet. I told my friend I lacked energy to continue. No water, hot temps, Whole30 = feeling like total poo. Whole30 is not for those who run 7 miles before their work outs. Not kidding. BBG did not happen today. I felt like death.

After breakfast and carpooling my kids to camp, Catholic Ed and everywhere in between, it was lunch. I did not feel like more chicken so I had more eggs. OMG really. I had egg whites, a plate full of veges, almonds and a larabar. I also had grapes and watermelon as I cleaned them. I feel somewhat better now, not as weak anyway. Not sure I could run away from a robber but I'd try (where this morning I would just let the robber have me).

The Whole30 website has a timeline. Day 5 is "Kill all things." Good thing I did not read this before committing to do it. Days 6-7 are I just want a nap. Great because day 7 is National Running Day or whatever. I was planning on at least running that day. I'll keep my fingers crossed. Looks like my pants will get tight (Won't be going to the pool those days!) before reaching 10-11 which are reportedly the hardest days. Well I thought these were the hardest days. Great, they get worse?!?! All I have to say is I am looking forward to getting me some Tiger Blood come day 16. I want to run again! This stinks BIG TIME! BUT I CAN NOT QUIT!!

Pros:
My skin looks better (Chris thinks I am seeing things).
I am sleeping great (because I can not move my body).

Cons:
Extreme lethargy
All the cooking, all the dishes. Seriously, the dishes and the cooking. It is nuts!
Cranky
Yesterday Chris saw pizza in the clouds and I dreamed of a Dr. Pepper while running with my daughter. I probably have not had a Dr. Pepper in 15 years. Clearly, I am craving me some sugar!

Until next time. I am going to take a nap! (I wish).

Day 6

Made it to day 6. Yesterday was so ugly. I was hoping today would be better. I did not run today because I knew I was not up to it. I got up at 4:55 as Chris left for the gym (okay he left at 4:40 but I rested a few more minutes) and went downstairs and cross trained. I did BBG legs followed by a hasfit tabata. Maybe whole30 is more for people less active. Again today, burpees seemed next to impossible. It was really hard to get through my BBG. This was the first time since day 1 I have done weights due to lethargy. I just did weights today in hopes of being able to finish the work out. Perhaps I should just walk...?

Breakfast: 4 egg whites, watermelon(Chris has scrambled eggs aka just eggs mixed up and bacon and fruit).
AM snack: Cashew Cookie Larabar (yum), mini one.
Lunch: Salmon, baked sweet potato, more watermelon (I know, but it is so good!).
Planned Dinner: Shrimp, acorn squash, and let's be honest, more watermelon
Snack at this afternoon's movie: apple pie larabar (hey, it is better than popcorn!).

I feel like I am eating way more food but still lack energy. I selected to take my kids to a movie today because I needed to save my energy for the running tonight for all their activities. Sad, but true! I walked into the pantry and eyed all the food I could not have. I feel full yet not satified.

Pro:
Not sure today
Cons:
No energy, going to the bathroom all the time like I am pregnant (which I am not), not feeling satified.

One more day down!

Whole 30: Day 7! 

I did eat fairly healthy before, but today I finally am feeling a little better. I feel like I can bring down a load of laundry without the help of my 9 year old son (not kidding). I ran a 7 something mile for 6 miles on this National Running Day but did have to stop some (which is not like me). Slow but sure. I did complete BBG arms, too. That is saying something.  I hope to run tomorrow too, and hoping for good things.

Breakfast: Egg whites (and a lot of them), 1 cup watermelon, black coffee
Lunch: Egg whites again (short on time), baked sweet potato (hoping this helps my energy), 1c. strawberries
Planned Dinner: Grilled Chicken Breast, acorn squash, maybe some watermelon if I get it cut.
Snack: Apple larabar and 5-10 shelled pistachios.

My kids are not eating whole30. That was a nightmare. I would have had to throw away my pantry in advance for them to do it. They cheat often when I am not looking, believe me. They had popcorn at the movies. My daughter is in all sorts of camps and eats all the provided snacks. All in all, they are eating more protein, fruit and vegetables and trying new things. So, that is all good.

Pros of week one:
* I feel more toned...? (see con though).
* I am eating more protein...maybe 30 percent is coming from protein. So, that is good. I know I was eating like 70 percent carbs before! YIKES!

Cons:
*Cooking
*Dishes
*Feeling lethargic most of the week
*Grocery shopping!! Gees, I went to the store so many times.
* I feel like I am eating ALL THE TIME! I mean if I am not cooking, cleaning up, car pooling, I am eating. Just a lot more food than I am used to.

Helps to preplan my meals. Chris does not do this so starves at work. Sorry but not sorry, plan it out! I am sure he has lost 5 pounds (not that we are going to weigh ourselves or anything). I feel emaciated. Not kidding. Now that my energy is improving, I am hoping that will improve too.

That's a wrap on week 1! 1/4 of the way there. That was not that hard (I guess).

Check here for week 2.

Alivia Becomes a Teenager!

Alivia is now 13!! Where does the time go? Gees I feel old.

Alivia celebrated her birthday the weekend before her birthday since her birthday fell on Memorial Day weekend. All of her friends were able to attend! It rained, but she made the best of it. She wanted to jump on the trampoline, play badminton, and play ladder ball with her friends. They took fun pictures, ate cake, and played a hide and seek game (and found my long lost credit card!). It was a fun group of girls. And, to top it off, they all game back on the last day of school, Alivia's actual birthday, and played in the back yard for a couple hours, ate ice cream and sang Happy Birthday to Alivia at her birth time. It was really cute.

Alivia has had a busy year. She did really well in the 7th grade, making the honor society, honor roll and ending the year with all A's. She is a perfectionist and works really hard. She kept busy with soccer all year round (indoor and outdoor) as well as running in cross country and track, making conferences in both. She held her own and appears to like running. We have no idea where she gets that! ;)

In Alivia's free time she likes to go shopping at the Outlets with Katy at the Under Armour and Nike Stores. She is in her room A LOT. She craves quiet and down time, too.

For her birthday, we bought her soccer gear, then returned the soccer gear after she decided she no longer liked soccer. Her coach said something to her after coming to practice without her cleats or shin guards because she came straight from a track meet. I did not think she would have time for soccer so did not bring her stuff with us. He should have yelled at me! She is not sure if she will try out the end of June. So for her birthday, we finally caved and gave her an iPhone. FINALLY. All of her friends have had a phone, some for years. Many are from divorced households so their situations are different. But, the ones from more stable homes have had phones a while too. SO, we caved. So far she can care less about it. But, she is not allowed to have any social media...so that makes a difference.

Alivia is a sweet, responsible, loving girl, but she is a teenager. She does have her teenager moments. We love her all the same. Happy Birthday, Alivia!

Birthday Questions answered by a 13 year old Alivia:
1. Favorite  color: Blue
2. Favorite Toy:  ipad
3. Favorite Fruit: strawberries
4. Favorite TV show:  Don't have one
5. Favorite thing to eat for lunch: Hotdog
6. Favorite Outfit:  Black Nike Shorts and a t-shirt
7. Favorite Game:  Color Switch
8. Favorite Snack: Chocolate Pudding Cake
9. Favorite Animal:  Dog
10. Favorite song: Stay (Alessia Cara)
11. Favorite Book:  Dog's Purpose
12. Best Friend: Katy
13. Favorite Cereal: Cocoa Krispies
14. Favorite thing to do outside: Run or play soccer
15. Favorite drink:  Lemonade
16. Favorite Holiday:   Christmas
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Prayer Bear & Great Grandma Pat's Doggy she gave me
18. Favorite thing to eat for breakfast?  Cereal or yogurt
19. What do you want to eat for your birthday dinner? Mamas Beef pizza, Chocolate pudding cake and DQ ice cream
20. What do you want to be when you grow up?  A vet.

Spring Break 2017: The Grand Canyon and Beyond

The Austin Spring breaks typically look quite similar, finding fun things to do locally. This year we decided to mix it up a bit and take our family vacation during spring break. Addison selected to go to the Grand Canyon, and I read spring break time was a great time to visit this beautiful National Park. So, it was a go.
We flew out of Omaha on Saturday morning all feeling well. Leading up to this trip, Asher had been sick for nearly a week. But, he had felt better the last few days before our departure. Anyway, we landed in Las Vegas and after an hour wait for the rental car (yes, not joking), we were off and driving the 4 LONG BORING hours to the Grand Canyon. If you select to do this, select a car with great gas mileage because there are not many gas stations after you leave Vegas. There is not much of anything! We were dreaming of water without a place to stop. We had a Camry, so the gas situation was great.
We arrived to see the Grand Canyon before Sunset Saturday afternoon. We were in awe when we stepped out of the car to see the view. It was jaw dropping. Nobody in our family had been there, so it was fun to experience it together. We took a view pictures and checked a few things out before sunset. The town we stayed in, Tusayan, Arizona, was just outside of the Grand Canyon National Park Entrance. The town is about a half mile long with hotels and a few restaurants on each end. Beyond the hotels are endless trees. That's it. The town had one gas station with a convenience store (that charges $7.99 for a box of wheat thins. Let's just say, you best have what you need before you get here). The town does have a Wendy's and a McDonalds. The first night, we fueled up on Wendy's. We have never eaten at a Wendy's because we are not typically fast food type people. But, they had something for all of us. The end of the first day.

In the middle of the night, we were awakened by Addison getting sick. She was vomiting. Great. Thank goodness I brought anti bacterial wipes. My alarm went off at 6am and I thought it was super dark for my run but whatever. I ran around the town in circles (so boring) in the dark. When I got back to the room I realized my phone had not updated to the spring ahead time change and I had just gone running at 5am instead of 6am! Everyone was awake when I returned to the room from my run.  Addison was still sick but thought she could make the ride into the park to see the Grand Canyon. We visited all the hot spots to see the great views of the canyon. All the while, Chris was stopping the car so Addison could get sick outside the car. It was horrible. The Canyon was beautiful, the weather was nice in the 60s. Since we left our room by 7am, we were finishing up at the visitors center by 12:30. Addison was still sick, so we needed to return to the hotel so she could rest. It was not super busy, but we could see it could get busier as the day went on. Since Addison was sick, there was no hiking in the canyon for us this trip. We spend the afternoon resting while the kids hit the spa. We did find a walking trail nearby that I decided I would try and run the next morning (against Chris' wishes because this trail ran into the woods. Although pretty, it was spooky to run alone). We grabbed food easy on the stomach and went to bed.

Sunday night I was awakened by Asher vomiting. Seriously! I walked into the bathroom and it looked like a vomit bomb went off in there. I am not sure if it was the smell or the mess, but I broke out in a sweat and had to leave the room into the cold outside so I did not throw up myself. I layed on the cold concrete deck. As I looked over, I realized my options were to try not to get sick or to throw up on cars. I held out. Once recovered myself, I went into find Chris with his face covered cleaning up the bathroom with the wipes I had brought along. It was awful. Poor Asher had the whole GI works too, and spent the night on a make shift bed right outside the bathroom.

I got up at 6am Monday and went running. I felt nauseated from the night before but knew the fresh air could only help. I ran the trail into the woods after sunrise. It was beautiful yet cold. It was a damp, maybe 30 degrees, but it felt so much colder. Once back at the room, the family was starting to crawl out of bed after yet another horrible night. Asher showered and got into clean clothes and made his way to the car. He was ready for bed and we were just getting up. He curled into a ball in the backseat as we made our way to Sedona. On the way we visited the Slide Rock State Park. $10! parking fee seems a bit steep for the maybe 2 hours we were there. Gees! It was pretty, but obviously the water was much too cold to swim (although idiots were getting it). The idea is to slide through the rocks in the water. Looked like fun if the temperature was right. It was hot, pushing 80, but the water felt like 40 degrees. The girls and I checked out the area first while Chris and Asher used the restroom. An hour past and Asher still could not leave the restroom. So, I stayed with Asher while Chris went with the girls to see the area. What a nightmare. Poor Asher said he felt dizzy and his stomach hurt all day. We drove through the beautiful Oak Creek Canyon before reaching Sedona. We attempted to see the sights around Sedona but what a traffic nightmre! I guess spring break is there big time because the temperatures are more reasonable. We saw the Chapel of the Holy Cross (The Chapel in Nebraska near Gretna is much better), Red Rock State Park (VERY EXPENSIVE!! And with a sick kid, we could not hike. So it was a total waste of money because there is nothing to this place! Take our recommendation and skip it!), Cathedral Rock, the Sedona Airport Vortex, Bell Rock, before heading back to the hotel. It was hot, in the 80s, so the girls went to the pool. Asher, now feeling a little better, went outside to dangle his feet. He did get in briefly but was too cold and weak to swim. Poor kid. We found our favorite Chipotle for dinner (Asher wanted plain rice and chips but did not eat any of it) and then visited the art area for Addison. She even got to see some local artists making pottery and is hoping to find a pottery class here at home. We survived another day.

Tuesday we climbed into the car and make our way back to Vegas, stopping at the Hoover Dam and Red Rock National Conservation Area. Although I don't believe Asher got sick Monday night, he was weak and very sick all day. Chris had to carry him all over the Hoover Dam area. Addison was completely scared by the Hoover Dam. Not sure what she thought would happen, but she did not want any part of it. The kids loved the Red Rock National Conservation Area. It is gorgeous, fun climbing and HOT! The kids loved the climbing. Asher was too weak to do much of any climbing but the girls got their fill (and Chris too). We got into Vegas around 3, checked into our hotel, and returned the rental car that we now hated. We then walked to Vegas to find food. Asher still did not have an appetite, poor thing, and had to be carried. And Chris thought he would not be getting a workout in! We saw our first homeless women sticking her head into a trash can (and she was higher than a kite) and Addison wanted to help her. Oh goodness, she is one we can not help today, Addison. That night, Alivia took her turn at getting sick. Now all the kids have had it.

Wednesday was the walking day from hell. We had not looked into Vegas buses yet or we would have known that the bus stop to the strip was right next to our hotel! No joke! Instead we walked 13 miles walking the strip! I ran 7 early in the morning, so I was exhausted! Vegas was very hot, upper 80s, so we walked the strip, went to the M&M store, Hershey store, and Coke store and took in the crazy sights. Vegas IS NOT FOR KIDS. We knew this before hand but we were flying out here so decided we may as well show them the lights and sounds. Oh my word, the place is gross. As a psych nurse, I can attest that Vegas has a real mental health issue. They leave their mental health to walk the strip at all hours, flipping out, screaming at their voices. If that was not scary enough, the rest of the people and the street performers will scare you. We got our picture taken with Mickey Mouse and friends. Little did we know we were to pay them for the picture. We thought they were with the hotel! We learned to just keep walking. YUCK! After a few hours, we all knew Vegas was not our thing. The smoke was enough to make you gag. Ugh. After all our walking, it was time to hit the pool. Alivia was feeling better, too, and went to the pool, too. We figured out the bus system so we could go to Fremont Street to see their light show. It was to go hourly from dusk to midnight nightly. We arrived at 6:15 and sunset was at 6:35. We figured the first show would be at 7 since that is dusk. Nope No luck. We were stuck there in the tunnel of cigarette smoke, naked people, and lack of good food choices for an hour. Yuck! The kids got icecream (for dinner!) as we waited at complained a lot. The show was not what we expected. I would recommend skipping Fremont Street too unless smoke and naked people are your thing. We then bused it to the Bellagio Hotel to see their water show. The water show is fabulous but SHORT! One song! I remembered it being longer. We got another song while we waited for the bus. At this point, everyone was tired, hungry and could care less about a water show. Made it through another day.

We were awake most of the night with Asher vomiting again. He again slept outside the bathroom. I believe he was sick 3x turning the trip, so I must have forgotten one time. It seemed like he was sick the entire trip because he never ate. Ugh. Anyway, Friday we woke up ready to just relax. We took the bus (YEAH FOR THAT!) down to the Coke, M&M and Hershey store for Alivia and repeated some of the treats. Asher was super weak and was carried. We got back to the hotel before noon and the girls swam all afternoon. It was very hot. It was nice to feel the sun and the water after being in the Nebraska cold. Asher stayed in the room with Chris and caught up on TV and got some rest. We ordered dinner into the room as we packed up for home.

Friday we got up early and flew out of Vegas, arriving back into Omaha at 1pm. We were tired and happy to be home.

We feel lucky to be able to take family trips together. We loved the Grand Canyon and will call the rest of it an experience. Not sure on our next vacation so I best get to planning!