30 Day Shred

day 9. 
As exercise 1 continues to get easier I continue to see a difference in the way I look and feel. I hate working out. I hate getting sweaty and I hate the way I jiggle when I do jumping jacks. I hate the jiggle the most. Therefore I will continue to workout and and sweat until the only things on my body that jiggle are the ta-tas (sorry mom).

 

I did something awesome yesterday. I made it through all the cardio circuits without having to stop and catch my breath. I'm pretty sure my text to Brady read something like this, "Dude. I am so freakin skinny. And awesome. Mostly awesome." In real life I stripped down to my sports bra, closed my eyes, and uttered "I'm gonna die" about 3456247542 times from the floor.

 

The floor is my new bff. I spend lots of time there.

 

Then Avey started fussing so I got off the floor and we did this:

 
Last night Brady asks, "Is that a photo of you nursing?"
Brit: Yeah-huh.
Brady: Why?
Brit: Because it's a beautiful thing and I don't want to forget it so I took a picture.

Yup. Pretty sure he thinks I'm nuts. Honestly 4 months ago I would have thought the same but we worked hard for that. Breastfeeding is NOT easy when you have a baby that was bottle fed straight out of the womb. There were many tears shed and I want to remember what we achieved. I can't really explain it. I used to think breastfeeding (lets count how many times I mention boobs in this post) was kinda icky. I used to wish that there were laws that prevented women from being able to do it in public. Now I realize just how silly I was. It is so far from icky.

It's kinda awesome.


pizza.
I'm really enjoying "skinny" food. I really haven't had many problems with temptation because I spoil myself with things like:

Greek Pizza!







Recipe
1 pizza crust (homemade or store boughtyou can have whatever you like)
2 big handfuls of spinach
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
salt and pepper
nutmeg, to taste
1 cup feta cheese crumbles
1/2 of a tomato
oregano

1. In a large skillet saute the garlic and onions until tender. About 3-4 minutes. 
2. Add spinach to the garlic and onions and wilt. 
3. Season with salt, pepper, and a little bit of nutmeg.
4. Top the pizza crust with the spinach mixture then top that with the feta. 
5. Place pizza in oven and bake according to the directions on crust. 
6. When the pizza comes out of the oven top with tomatoes, oregano, and black pepper. 

Avey's First Laugh

dishes.

I decided I needed to start organizing my days better. I made a pretty schedule and everything. Yeah. Still can't seem to pull myself away from the baby long enough to do the dishes. The major surgery/just had a baby card is tapped out. I placate him with delicious foods, wine and desserts. The way I figure it-- I can keep this up until Avey turns one can walk and do the dishes. Problem solved.

Mohawk. People pay to look this way. Sister was born with it. Check it.

bachelor.
Even though after finding out that Ben was going to be The Bachelor this season and swearing I would boycott-- I am back for more. It's like a really bad car accident-- you just can't look away. After watching Courtney get naked and take a dive into the ocean with Ben-- you know whats coming.

They always pick the yucky girl.

Why pick a beautiful, intelligent, doctor when a naked, evil, model is throwing herself at you? Cha! There's no competition. He's a moron. At least she's funnier than Vienna.
But really. I'm shocked and appreciative because with a dull uninteresting bachelor Courtney's one-liners make the show worth watching.

“Blakeley is like a champion out there. Who knew that strippers could play baseball?”
“It crossed my mind…maybe I won’t be seeing her again. I hope I got her number. I could use a personal trainer.”
“Maybe she drank too much and Jersey Shore came out.”


Oh. And one must not forget-- "Winning!"

dieting.
I still have about ten pounds to lose before I'm down to pre-pregnancy weight-- not to mention all the weight I had to lose before I gained a baby. We've been trying out different diets and have come to the conclusion that we just love food too much.

It's not my love for food but more my love for preparing it that gets me in all the trouble. We'll be doing fabulously the first three days of a diet and then I start shopping recipes and all hope is lost. I really love baking. I really love cooking. I really love tasting.

But I'd really love to get my body back more. So here I am. Day three--again. Not shopping recipes but trying to come up with innovative ways to healthily spice up broccoli and cabbage! Yum!

This is the face she makes when she's done taking pictures. Still adorable, right?

parents.
We've been going over to my parents house a lot. My brothers text Brady at least once a day-- "games?" I'm glad they're all getting along so well. I'm a lucky girl. Not everyone gets to be apart of a family where all parties thoroughly enjoy each other.

They play video games and I chill out and watch television on a big screen. I don't know if I've mentioned it before but we don't have television at our house. In a way we kinda do. I've hacked my Dads netflix so I don't get too lonely but really not having the TV on all the time is really nice. Not getting a bill is nice. The extra snuggle time is nice.

Snuggling is my favorite.

Avey likes to sleep while we're over there. I've never seen a baby so tolerant of a carseat. Really. Coolest. Baby. Evah.

baby. 
She is learning new tricks all the time. Daddy is teaching her how to sit. She does this thing when she's laying down where she'll lift her head, squeeze her stomach muscles and try to pull herself into a sitting position. She's only two months old and she's an overachiever already.

Brady'll support her back with one hand and she does all the rest of the work. Sister is a rockstar.

Today we were laying in bed together and I began to repeatedly say "dada" because her reaction was so grand. She would reward me with one of her million dollar smiles. I like to send Brady videos while he's at work and I thought he'd get a kick out of her silly grins.

I grabbed my million year old dinosaur phone(pink razor--remember those?) and began to film... and this is what I got:

Avey's first laugh. I couldn't believe it. I just kept speaking and she just kept laughing.

Thank you friends for sharing all these incredible "firsts" with us. I feel so privileged and humbled to have such incredible friends and family.

I Came From Where?!?!

Avey and I are having  a lazy morning listening to Big Daddy Weave on Pandora and hiding underneath the covers while the sky pours outside.

I am so blessed to have a husband who works hard so that I can stay home. Being Aveys mommy is the most fulfilling and rewarding position I've ever held. I realize that getting to spend every moment with her is a privilege and that not every mommy is afforded the same privilege. Thank you Lord for providing for my husband and I.

She is so silly.

As is custom for every person on earth in January-- Brady and I have made a resolution to begin a raw whole foods diet. We kissed being a carnivore good-bye for the time being. I'm excited to see what improvements are made in our health.

 Hi-Yaw! Kay-Raw-Tay!

As most of you know I have Hypo-Thyroid disease. I had accepted the fact that I would be on pills everyday for the rest of my life. After watching a documentary called Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead where  an Australian man cured his autoimmune disease with a juice fast-- I've been encouraged. If his body can heal itself so can mine. It's time to clean out this temple and start this year fresh-- healed-- Holy.

Baby girl agrees. It's a grand idea. 

Yesterday was our anniversary. We spent some time at home and took our time getting ready. We went ghetto and decided to eat at Applebee's because we had a giftcard. Our waitress was awful but aside from that it was a nice lunch that neither one of us had to prepare or pay for. We held hands the whole time while making frequent glances at the sleeping baby in the carrier.


Note the dirty diaper. Classy.

I was surprised the other day when I laid Avey down after her 2am feeding when she didn't cry-- she just laid there smiling and chatting quietly to herself.  I went back to bed and so did she. She did it again last night. It's a relief to know that my independent girl doesn't need me to rock her to sleep every time I lay her down.

Shes got this. 

Her eyes are still blue-- she's rockin' it.

Tana came for a visit. All the way from Alabama just to see little one. Well-- not exactly but Avey fueled her motivation.

Blessed to have friends that care for me and my family. Tana and Tori oohhed and aahhed like Avey was glitter.

She is pretty impressive.

Sometimes we just sit and have nonsensical conversations. I have a feeling that we'll continue doing this until one or both of us are gone. She's just so cool and I thrive on her sweet baby coo's, face engulfing smiles, and kisses. I could live on her kisses.

Have a beautiful Monday. Don't work too hard. Hold the ones you love close. Inhale their scent. Make strives to never forget these moments.

And with this I leave you with the words of the winner of the facebook caption contest-- Zuzu Ford:

"I came from where?!?!"