Blogmas Day 3: A peek into our kitchen

Better late than never, right? Vic and I actually managed to get a full NINE HOURS of sleep last night, so our morning started a tad bit later than usual. We both tend to wake up between 5 and 6 every morning, so sleeping past 7 am was pretty exciting. We ventured out to get bagels and then braved Costco, right as they opened. We think we're somehow permanently stuck on East Coast time, because we didn't go home until nearly 11 and we were like "well, there goes the day", haha. Ryker is way too cool for naps these days, so we introduced him to the Grinch while Cora took a much needed nap after our Costco adventure. Ryker called it the Not Scary Christmas Alien movie and enjoyed it! It has been fun introducing him to movies that aren't cartoons!

I'm pretty impressed with our Costco haul this time around, we loaded up on so many veggies and I've already tried a new recipe with the zucchini and apples that Cora and I loved. Cora is teething this weekend, so wish us luck. She's nearly 18 months old and is just now popping out a handful of teeth at once. She's been only wanting soft sandwiches and warm sweet potatoes, so I tried something new and was glad to see she liked it! She then went straight back to being absolutely pitiful, and the poor thing has just been sleepy and fussy all day. She spent a good portion of the afternoon strapped to my back so that she could snuggle me and I could be productive. She's only got eyes for her Momma when she's feeling down.

I diced up one pink lady apple and one zucchini and sautéed them in one tablespoon of Kerrygold butter, cinnamon and a sprinkle of salt, until they were soft. I got Vic and Ryker to eat the apples, but I can't trick them into zucchini.

I keep saying that I'm going to start cooking one meal that works for all of us, but honestly, it has just become easier to make sure I have everything I need for the staples that we all enjoy, and then I can whip up what everyone likes quickly. For the kids that means grilled cheese, berries, broccoli or green beans, blueberry waffles and chocolate milk. They basically survive off of the above and Goldfish. Considering I can get them both to eat a pretty solid amount of fresh produce on a regular basis and they both get more protein than the average adult, I don't stress on the stuff they enjoy. Silly fact about them, Ryker likes jelly sandwiches, but Cora likes peanut butter sandwiches. Ryker hating peanut butter blows my mind.  

I'm pretty sure he's mostly made of Fairlife Chocolate Milk. 

 We've been getting Ryker more and more involved around the house as he is understanding what needs to get done more each day. He's responsible for feeding the dogs, and gets to help out in the kitchen. We've been baking a lot, but he loves getting to help cook dinner. Along with not liking peanut butter, he generally won't eat pizza either. I thought if he helped put his together that he might actually eat it, but nope. Oh well, we won't have to share with him! When I asked him if he was ready to eat it he replied with "nope, I just want blueberry muffins."

Things that we HAVE to have in our fridge at all times:
Fairlife Chocolate and Whole milk
Extra lean ground turkey
Lean ground beef
Archer Farms frozen asparagus and sweet potatoes
Flavored Muscle Egg
Egg Whites
Reddi Whip
Berries
Shredded Cheese
Whole Eggs
Kerrygold Butter
Spinach
Romaine
Frozen broccoli

Things we always have in our pantry:
Multigrain Sandwich thins
Natural Skippy PB
Goldfish
Some sort of yummy cereal
Eureka bread
Oats
Oh Yeah One Bars
1st Phorm Phormula 1, Ignition, Level 1

We add in random stuff that we wander past when we shop at either Target or Costco (use Carthwheel and Ibotta for deals!), but those round out our staples! We like to try and keep what we eat at home pretty balanced and simple, so that when we want to go out we don't have to feel guilty about indulging a little bit.





1stphorm.com/christina for free shipping and the supplements that keep me on track

dedfitshop.com use the code Christina for 10% off the comfiest clothes, EVER!

Blogmas Day 2: let's get even more personal (some struggles)

Oh hey, guys! Does anyone else wake up extra early to enjoy their house in silence? I adore my mornings where I get to sip my coffee, scroll through emails and pay bills, while the rest of the house is quietly sleeping. It's just so peaceful!

This morning, I wanted to open up about something that I have struggled with for over 15 years. It's shaped a huge part of myself, and is an important factor of my story and especially my fitness story, but it's something that is pretty embarrassing to discuss. Coming off of my competition prep, I've had a new version of the same old problem and you know how they say in school that if you have a question, someone else probably has that same one so you should definitely ask it out loud? Well, I'm hoping this reaches someone who needs to know they aren't alone. Get ready, shit's about to get kind of heavy.

I've struggled with bulimia and binge eating since middle school. Luckily, I was able to overcome the purging with my marriage to Vic. Early on, he had an inkling that something was up and I honestly just felt so overcome with guilt after going out to Buffalo Wild Wings one night (I'll never forget this), that I broke down and told him all about it. What is funny about that, is how as soon as I said something, spoke the words, but didn't ask for help, I just felt so much lighter. My eternal teammate knew the problem and was prepared to help me get through it. Did I just magically become healed from a constantly nagging eating disorder? Hell no! But, over the years I developed the tools and strategies to get me through the hard times and work on myself, both mentally and physically.

Pregnancy was hard for me in that sense. Gaining weight is a tough pill to swallow for anyone that has struggled that intensely with controlling their weight. At the worst, I'd have plowed through a giant plate of French fries or a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch and have this dialogue about how my baby didn't want food like that and how I was already failing them. Jesus, Christina, that's crazy! But do you see how I remember all of this so clearly? It's crazy how it really cuts itself into you.

She deserves a healthy, happy Momma

Through my healing process, I've developed the ability to be pretty good at extremes, which is why I think my competition prep wasn't too miserable to get through. Don't worry, I haven't travelled over to a new side of disordered habits, I've just found a new way of looking at my body. 95% of the time I can eat for fuel, eat for what my body needs to do (endurance running, cutting, building), but, the problem I am having post show involves binging. I can stay solid on my plan all day, and then mindless snacking starts and I realize "shit, now I've blown my macro plan!". What happens next? Usually an internal conversation about "well, I could do damage control and move on....OR, I could eat that whole box of cereal and all the Lenny and Larry cookies so it isn't here tomorrow and then I start over!" Do you think that second option actually helps me? Absolutely not! But, it's happening and all too often. I've gained 10 pounds since my show, and this morning I weighed in at 136 even. The day of my second show, I walked on stage at 121, but that is a depleted, dehydrated state, so I'm not counting what I lost during peak week. I know that stage lean is so unrealistic and dangerous to try and maintain, but like I said earlier, any weight gain, even the healthy and necessary kind, is pretty scary.

12/1/2016 My weight is up, but so is my energy and my strength! 

 So, I shared this in the hopes that A) it will help me be more accountable for my binging at night, because quite frankly, I don't want to gain any more weight, I'd like to build my physique at my current body fat percentage to reduce the amount of work that needs to get done in my next prep, if even by a little. B), I always want to be open, honest and REAL with you guys. I'm pretty sure like four people read this and my captions regularly, but I figure if one person needs to read it, maybe I've helped them not feel alone today. 

Eating disorders are like alcoholism (fun fact, I have both running through various parts of my family tree), you don't heal and move on. It doesn't go away. There are always triggers. But, I decided when I wanted to have children, back in my Mustang crying to Vic outside of Buffalo Wild Wings, that I would not give my children a Mom who literally couldn't stomach herself due to something as silly as food. There is no magic here, I decided that I was done and then I stuck with it. The family that I wanted to build and nurture meant more to me than my terrible habit. I was enough, I AM ENOUGH.  Every day, I stick with it. Every day, I decide that I am bigger than my demons and that it may be hard, but if I just stick to my guns, I can get through anything. YOU CAN, TOO. I'm here, friends, and I think this is WHY I'm here. Please reach out if there is anything that you need to get off your chest so we can move forward together.

Forward progress, every day. Never settle.

Love you guys,

Christina

Lifestyle Coaching: email me at c.kassel@yahoo.com, lets work for a more balanced life, together!

1stphorm.com/christina for free shipping and the supplements that keep me on track

dedfitshop.com use the code Christina for 10% off the comfiest clothes, EVER!

Blogmas!

Welcome to Blogmas, Friends! If you haven't heard of Blogmas or Vlogmas before (I may do both!), they are a great opportunity to kind of kick yourself in the butt and use the month of December to push yourself to put out more content on a regular basis. This is something I desperately need to do, so here we go!

I was thinking that for this opening post, we should do a "get to know Christina", since I haven't blogged in way too long! So, here it goes, I'll try and keep it short.

My name is Christina. I'm a stay at home Mom with my son, Ryker, and daughter, Cora. He's 3.5, she's 1.5. They are so much fun, but can be total shit shows as well, so they keep me on my toes. Lately, as Ryker gets older, he blows my mind and becomes more and more like our roommate and that loud guy we hang out with! Cora is a year and a half with no teeth and she refuses to walk, so that's fun. The teeth are there, I can see them wanting to come out and chew food, and she can walk if you hold her hand...as you can see, I'm starting to become aware of how much trouble she may be as her stubborn self gets older. She just learned how to throw a tantrum, so keep me in your thoughts, haha.

 

I served in the Navy for six years before getting out in late September of 2015. I enjoyed the Navy, but I accidentally fell in love with my other half after three months of joining, and here we are nearly seven years later with two kids and a mortgage. This girl wanted to be home with her family instead of sailing the seven seas, so I ran when my contract was up. For a second, I worked for a cyber security firm, but quickly found that I hate being a sales person and that I preferred hanging out with my kids all day, so here I am!

While my husband has helped fuel the fire of my passion for fitness and wellness for years, following the birth of Cora and my second journey into postpartum weight loss, I decided to try my hand at bodybuilding competition. Holy cow, it's so much fun! I competed this fall, twice, and received seventh and third place finishes. My third place finish made me qualified for a National level show, so that is where my focus is at now. I've also found a love for destroying my kitchen with Ryker while we bake up some new concoction, and he loves to help me in the kitchen. We try new recipes regularly, they are rarely aesthetically pleasing, but generally taste pretty damn good! I'm trying to prepare meals that all four of us can/will eat, and promise to start sharing my successes and failures more often so you can laugh, cringe and say "yum!" along with us!

I've been given the awesome opportunity of representing DEDFIT Apparel, whose link can be found here, dedfitshop.com. If you use the code Christina you get 10% off! Their clothing is awesome, but the work ethic and drive of those involved with the company is absolutely amazing. Definitely check them out! I also work with 1st Phorm for all of our supplements, and even Ryker looks forward to his protein oats! Check out 1stphorm.com/Christina for free shipping! If you have any questions about the products or how they can best help you, PLEASE reach out to me!

My mom asked me a simple but important question yesterday while we spoke about my application to compete at the Arnold Amateur this year. "And you love doing this?" I do. My heart sings for this. I soul is so happy and grateful when someone reaches out to me with questions or concerns and we work together to help them start on their own fitness or wellness journey. A client of mine recently met his goal well before the time allotted, all by making one small change with his diet and adding a bit more conscientious activity. I want to put more smiles on people's faces by teaching them how to keep a smile on their face and not falling back to old, detrimental habits.

I hope you guys enjoy following along with myself and my family. We welcome you into ours!

Blogmas Day 1: Complete! Let's do this, fam :)

#DDFIT 10% Christina
#iam1stPhorm
Coaching: c.kassel@yahoo.com

Silly low carb diets, Trix can be for everyone!

Ok, I was recently asked about this so I wanted to jot down a few thoughts on low carb diets, to help people get a better understanding of why they are so appealing, and why that shiny, brand new diet stops working so well after a while. 

First, let us talk about carbs for a second. Carbs are valued at 4 calories per gram. EVERY. SINGLE. CARB is worth the same amount of calories, whether it comes from a pop tart or a strawberry. I'm not going to dive into complex versus simple carbs, but let's just say that they are both 4 calories, and the distinctions have more to do with their ability to be broken down, and nothing to do with how many calories they are. One is not necessarily better than the other, but it is good to try and always go for variety in food sources. We all know where carbs come from, because they are usually our favorite food groups. Ice cream, pizza crust, cookies, fruit, so on and so forth. 

Low carb diets divert your intake from carbs and redirect you to an increase in protein and fat intake so you don't starve to death. Generally, people will see a rapid weight loss from starting a low carb diet, most of which is the result of losing water weight. Now, water weight can be an extremely obnoxious concept to work with because water weight increases or decreases can get confusing when it comes to your physique goals. This is what I want you to remember today....carbs hold water. 
Your body needs carbs to get through life. Glycogen is stored throughout your body. "Approximately 400 grams are stored as muscle glycogen, 90-110 grams as liver glycogen, and 25 grams circulate in the blood as glucose. When the body needs more glucose than is available in bloodstream to support energy demands, glycogen stores are used to raise blood glucose levels." (IAState.edu) When you ingest carbs, your body holds on to both water and sodium in order to process everything and keep your body balanced the way it would like to be. This water retention can be about 3g per gram of carbohydrate. Just think about that for a second! For your rice cake, which has about 7 g of carbs, your body will hold on to roughly 21 g of water and sodium...resulting in a possible and temporary water weight gain. 

So, when you cut carbs from your diet, your body isn't holding that water and you may drop weight quickly. As long as you don't add the carbs back in, you may even keep it off for a while. But, if you add in carbs, and especially if you do it quickly, YOU WILL GAIN WEIGHT. It may just be water weight, but you will jump up. For most people, this is what sends them spiraling out of control, because they are frustrated and thats understandable. 

You need carbs to get in a good workout. Workouts help you reach your goals...so eat your carbs. If it makes you feel better to stick to natural sources, that's awesome! Berries are a great option because they have a ton of micronutrients and you can have so many strawberries for 20 g of carbs. Cutting out an entire food group, or in this case, attempting to cut out an entire macronutrient option is just not a good idea and I can almost guarantee that you will regret it, especially after a few days on "no" carbs and you see someone with a cookie! Find your balance, if you need help with that just reach out and ask! I could talk your ear off, but just wanted to put a little tid bit out there for now! 

I'll include some articles below for more information. 

Glycogen storage- Illusion of easy weight loss: http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/56/1/292S.abstract

Glycogen Metabolism: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21190/

Can a high carb diet cause you to retain water?: http://www.livestrong.com/article/309135-can-a-high-carb-diet-cause-you-to-retain-water/

Beefy Pumpkin Tarts

Beefy Pumpkin Tarts

Ingredients:

1 pound of 93% lean ground beef

1 TB garlic powder

.5 TB McCormick Montreal Steak Seasoning

1 tsp chili powder

1 cup pumpkin puree (add salt, cinnamon and McCormick seasoning to taste, about .25 tsp each)

1 bag of steamable veggies (I used Archer Farms sweet potato, kale and cranberry mix)

2 Pillsbury Thick Pizza Crusts

1 TB Kerrygold butter

1 TB parmesan (optional)

Brown the beef with the garlic powder, steak seasoning and chili powder, drain. Mix up pumpkin puree with its seasonings, it will be the base sauce of the tart. Lay out pizza crusts on cutting board, slice into 9 rectangles. Spoon pumpkin puree on half the rectangles, then spoon beef mixture and top with cooked veggies. Top each rectangle with another piece of crust, crimp the edges shut. Melt butter, brush onto the top of each tart. Dust each tart with garlic powder and parmesan. Bake at 375 degrees for 18 minutes, or until golden.

Prior to starting my competition prep, I was already tracking my intake and usually chose to keep breakfasts and lunches pretty clean so that dinner could be something that we all wanted to eat. So, tonight I present you with my latest concoction: Beefy Pumpkin Tarts! I told Ryker it was a dinner poptart, hoping it would trick him into wanting to eat it over his current obsession with jelly sandwiches. For the record, it didn’t work tonight. Vic did serve as taste tester and he liked them! He requested less veggies and more meat, and I have to say, I could have fit more into my tarts but I was worried they would spill out. They didn’t, so now I know that I can pack them with a bit more! I’m excited to try these with other flavor combinations, too. These are pretty carb heavy with the pizza crust, but they're loaded with pumpkin and veggies and lean meat, so I call them a win!

Traffic, Disneyland and Muffin Cookies

It has been a week, let me tell ya. I'm the kind of person that professionally stresses, like really...when is someone going to start paying me for all of this stressing I do? This week, I have my final project for a Sports Finance class to do, the class is the last one in my Sports Management graduate certificate to go with my Masters, and I just want it done. The class is pretty far over my head, I'm not a balance sheet kind of girl. So, I decided that I would take the kids to Disneyland this last Thursday for some magical R&R before diving into this powerpoint over the weekend. I wanted to get there when they opened, because the lines are shorter and they do some special stuff with the characters in Toontown first thing in the morning.

So, we left at 6:30 in the morning...and I hit the worst traffic EVER. Siri had me weaving through side streets to avoid the terrible freeway, and then dumped me at a freeway entrance that took almost an hour to get onto with the traffic lights and congestion. We finally get to Disneyland, Cora has been screaming the whole way, and they loop me around the park three times before sending me into the parking lot that is furthest away. Now, here's the thing, I go to Disneyland sometimes for my cardio! So the walk wasn't really a problem, except that I had been in my car for an extra hour and a half and really had to pee. I unload the car and load the stroller only to realize there is a piece of metal sticking out of my low tire. I call Vic freaking out, and we decide to call USAA and have roadside assistance meet me after I get a few hours of Mickey with the kids. Fast forward to running back out to the car, it turns out the metal was barely in there (I didn't mess with it too much for fear of creating a leak) and we were on our way home. There were so many tears from all three of us in the car, but in the end the day was great and I actually wanted to try again the next day. Disney problem much, anyone?

Days like that are great for perspective, and helped my parenting a bit. I was a terrible Mom in the car, despite the whole trip being about giving the kids and I a great day! Cora wants to hold my hand, from the back seat, while we drive. All the time! So, she's screaming at me, Ryker wanted her to be quiet and wanted to know when we would be at Disneyland and traffic was making me crazy. I muttered to myself that I was going to throw Cora out the window if she didn't shush, and that sent Ryker over the edge. "Don't throw Cora out the window, Mom! She's my best friend!" It took a good 20 minutes to calm him down and convince him that I didn't mean it, that I was just frustrated. He's so aware, and at three, I forget that he's turning into a real little person, he's not a baby anymore. He thanked me and apologized for "making you impossibly crazy" all day. All I wanted to do was ease his little mind's worries and get a smile on his face, and Disneyland never fails there! I generally have a long fuse with the kids, but with my prep and everything it has definitely gotten shorter. That morning was a reminder that I chose to do this for me and I need to keep my shit together for them!

Now, on to the fun stuff. The recipe I'm going to share is from a family cookbook. It is supposed to be muffins, but I baked them as cookies to make it easier for Cora to hold them. I don't suggest the cookie route, they were too moist and Ryker got weirded out, so, we'll stick to muffins! It's been hard for me to not snack on these all day, they've got a good amount of pumpkin and banana, so they're healthy in my book, haha! I ran the macros for the recipe done as cookies, and for 40 little cookies it came to roughly 120 calories, 4 grams of fat, 19 grams of carbs and 2 grams of protein. Let me know if you try them!

Head down, thoughts high

Yesterday was my Grandmother’s birthday, she turned 75! Her birthday happens to be my half birthday, which has been a fun little thing for us to share and laugh about for years. When I called her yesterday, we spoke about what is going on in her life (she’s about to move closer to all of us), and she asked about how my competition prep is going. I told her about how Vic and I both had the flu this week, and how after 8 weeks of prepping, I’m starting to get burnt out and a little frustrated. I told her that I didn’t know if I could ever do this again, that I love the results but that the grind and focus on needing to do more is starting to wear me down.

My competition suit!

As I sit here this morning, drinking my coffee in my silent, sleepy house on a Saturday morning, I am reflecting on that conversation, and a number of other conversations that I’ve had with Vic and my Mom lately in regards to competition prep. I’m typically an all or nothing kind of person, if something doesn’t grab me enough to be an “all”, it will usually end up a nothing. I’ll just move on. There have been a few times that I’ve told Vic “I don’t want to do this anymore”, “I don’t know how people can do this, this sucks”. But then I shut up and I eat my perfectly portioned meal, I drag myself to the gym and I get the work done. While I may have had some growing pains throughout the last couple of months, this has been my “all”. I’ve bitched and moaned about it, but instead of quitting and finding a way to justify moving past this, I’ve fought to continue this prep, to continue to push myself further and find what happens when I commit to changes and new challenges.

First progress picture

I hit a new low this morning, so maybe that’s where this veiled positivity is coming from. My coach is hoping we’ll break in to the 120’s at the end of prep, and we are quickly approaching what I thought was an outrageous scenario. I’ve focused on how hard this is, how much I hate it and how I just want to have different goals, and yet I fight for this one, I’ve been desperately clinging to my need to finish this, and to finish strong. Maybe I secretly love this? While the road to the results may suck a bit, I think I’ve found one of the best examples of my personal version of “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”. Competition prep is not for the light hearted, and I don’t know that now, being 8 weeks in and just under 7 weeks out, if I would suggest it to majority of the people I know, but I do suggest this…take a second to reevaluate your words, your thoughts and your actions about the things you choose to spend your time on. I know, after my little coffee revelation this morning, I am going to grind through the next seven weeks with a different attitude. I’m going to honor this choice I made and the work I’ve put in with a positive light, with motivating thoughts and with pride, because I’ve worked too damn hard so far to not take a second and applaud what I’ve been doing.

7 weeks out

I hope that you have that something like this in your life, and if you don’t yet, I encourage you to go ahead and jump head first in to that project you’ve been thinking about. Especially those of us that are parents and give so much to our families, work on you, and don’t feel guilty about it! And above all, take a second to look at your attitude and adjust accordingly. Now, I need a new cup of coffee.

All Star Weekend

“It was there during an NBA’s Board of Governors meeting, USA Today sports later reported, that Warriors President Rick Welts — who is openly gay — told league owners that he would not feel comfortable attending the All-Star Game in Charlotte given the passage of North Carolina House Bill 2, a law that removed some anti-discrimination protections from gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people” (Dawson, 2016).

For practically any big event, from the Olympics, to the Super Bowl, rugby and soccer tournaments, and of course, the NBA All Star Game, there is some sort of bidding process that takes place, where large cities across the United States put together their best package to offer to the leaders of professional sports leagues, in an effort to have the opportunity to play host to some of the world’s largest sporting events. In theory, cities will see economic boosts from hosting an event, especially if they already have the infrastructure in place. In some other cases, like the very recent Rio Olympics, it may be a struggle to pull together what is needed to seamlessly host a successful event.

The NBA All Star game occurs every Spring, and is an opportunity to show case some of the more fun aspects of Basketball, like slam dunk contests and skills challenges. Like many other events, it moves every year to a new city. The 2017 All Star Game was being planned for Charlotte, NC. On July 21, 2016, the NBA announced that due to conflicting opinions and values in regards to a recent law that was passed in North Carolina that has been criticized as discriminatory against LGBT people in the state, they will not be bringing their game, nor the out of town fans and economic boost to North Carolina. “We know that hosting an NBA All-Star Game generates a healthy seven-, eight-figure economic impact,” Gahl said. “There’s also a marketing win in hosting a major sporting event.” (Taylor, 2016)

Of course, other cities jumped at the opportunity to put in their bid, but considering that the conversation was beginning in July, and the game occurs in February, there was little time to be wasted. New Orleans was recently awarded the All Star Game, after rushing to quickly deliver their package, representing the ability to excitement of the city in reference to the opportunity. “In less than a month, city officials cleared significant hotel space, moved major events and convinced the league that New Orleans was prepared for an influx of additional visitors on the already-crowded weekend that opens Mardi Gras” (Dawson, 2016).

Beyond the need for any city that hopes to host this event to show that they have the ability to house the many pieces of the All Star Game, to offer hospitality services to the influx of fans and just generally pull off the weekend, there is now a new factor that is being considered. Does the NBA, the back office officials, the players and the fans, want to be associated with your city and its politics? This brings a crazy new element to state politics, will a change in laws create a huge political AND economic backlash if they create outcasts? “Louisiana is the only state in its footprint — including Texas, Oklahoma, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida and North Carolina, which have NBA cities — that has a state law prohibiting discrimination against public employees based on sexual orientation and gender identity, according to the Human Rights Campaign. That protection is the result of an executive order signed by Gov. John Bel Edwards in April” (Dawson, 2016)

Other cities are not wasting time in their attempt to lure the All Star Game to their homes and their stadiums over the years, and bidding will start soon for 2019. “Indiana Sports Corp. would look to secure sponsorships for the event and Visit Indy would ensure the availability for hotels and the convention center…We know that hosting an NBA All-Star Game generates a healthy seven-, eight-figure economic impact,” Gahl said. “There’s also a marketing win in hosting a major sporting event.” (Taylor, 2016)

With this new element added to the mix, it will be interesting to see how the All Star Game travels around the country from here on out.

REFERENCES

Dawson, B. (2016, August 19). 'A huge whirlwind': How New Orleans landed the NBA All-Star Game in 29 days. Retrieved August 24, 2016, from http://www.theadvocate.com/new_orleans/sports/pelicans/article_2df9d922-6661-11e6-8efb-eb99929198f4.html

NBA All-Star Game History. (n.d.). Retrieved August 24, 2016, from http://www.nba.com/history/all-star/

Steinmetz, K. (2016, July 24). The NBA Took the All-Star Game Away From Charlotte. Here's Why It Matters. Retrieved August 24, 2016, from http://time.com/4419503/nba-all-star-game-charlotte-north-carolina-lgbt/

Taylor, N. (2016, February 13). Pacers to make case for hosting NBA's All Star Game. Retrieved August 24, 2016, from http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nba/pacers/2016/02/13/pacers-plan-make-case-hosting-nba-all-star-game/80341416/

A new routine

Being home with my two kiddos has been a crazy switch up to the routine that I'm used to but I love it! There are definitely days where I don't know how I'll make it to nap time, or how we'll all survive until Daddy gets home but overall we're learning to settle into our new routines without work, daycare and having Cora home with us. Our Little Miss is two months old now and a smiley little thing, but of course she's very coy around the camera.

Our day starts early, with Cora and I up around 5 for her to nurse and I start the coffee. Usually, I try to have her back down in our room by 5:45 so that I can be at the gym by 6 am and get the bulk of my workout done. Ryker gets up around 7 and will play in his room until Vic frees our little monster for breakfast! I get back to the house around 8 and help Vic get out the door while trying to clean up after the tornado mess that the boys create in the morning. Cora usually nurses again around then and Ryker and I settle in for the Today show on the TV and either Mickey Mouse or Dinosaur Train on my computer for him.

Ryker, Cora and I play in their room until nap time, unless I'm brave enough to take everyone out for an adventure. I generally try to make sure that any out of the house excursions are planned to get the kids home by noon so that Ryker can get his nap in. This also gives me time in the afternoon to get the stuff around the house done since he usually sleeps for close to three hours. We've gone to the aquarium, the big park nearby and made many trips to Target for our adventures lately, learning to successfully get out of the house with both kids without forgetting anything has been a huge feat for me and I'm proud to say that I haven't forgotten diapers in the last week, haha.

I made myself a schedule, being the planner that I am, to organize my day and week around the house while the kids nap so I don't get stuck sitting on the couch and watching HGTV all day. Every day I tackle vacuuming the living areas, cleaning the kitchen, making our bed and doing one load of laundry. Then, each day has it's own assignment. For instance, Monday is master bathroom day, Tuesday is the kid's bathroom, and so on. It helps me feel like I'm getting something accomplished outside of our errands and has really helped my transition to being at home while I'm on the job hunt.

Usually while the kids are down I'll also hop on my treadmill and knock out a few miles. I decided to start training for the Shamrock Marathon this Spring on top of my training with Ashley Horner, so needless to say I'm always sore! That outlet has also really helped with staying sane! Recently, I signed the kids and I up at Vic's gym so that I can drop them off in their daycare and Ryker can play with other kids while I work out.

Once Ryker is up, we all play outside with his water table or with chalk or if the weather is super horrible, it's been way too hot some days, we hang out inside and work on his letters and numbers and such in his room and then watch Planes, the kid loves that movie.

By the time that's all done Vic is usually home and he takes the kids so I can get a few minutes alone before I start dinner. This is all very different than waking up and putting on my steel toe boots and being in a building with no windows all day, surrounded by computers and I love it. Of course, the fact that I can wear yoga pants all day contributes to that and I love having my hair down, it's crazy how long it got after all those years of having it back in a tight bun!

There's a little peek into our daily routine, I'm off to prepare some iced coffee and get on my treadmill for an active rest day. Our little lady has her two month check up today and I can't wait to find out how much she weighs now!