Quinoa, Quinoa, Bo Binoa, Banana Fa fana fo Finoa....

My time is running out (or at least I anticipate it is) and so I must take the time to blog about the biggest and most significant difference in having a pregnancy take me by surprise and being able to plan for one: My Health.

Not only for the first time am I able to start my prenatal pills early like I am supposed to, but I have been able to put myself on a pre-pregnancy diet and work out routine. What does this diet look like you ask? Well basically this:

Grilled Chicken (or fish), Green vegetable (lots of them) and Quinoa and thats it. EVERYNIGHT for the last 2 months. Yes Joe has been doing it too (for his own reasons) and yes my kids eat it as well (but they get suckers after dinner!) I also eat non fat yogurt for breakfast, and have bran cereal for lunch. I am not super strict if there is a reason to cheat, like date night or sunday afternoon pancakes. But I never let myself cheat for no reason because I find that there is so often a good reason at least once a week. I do plan on keeping to this diet (very loosely) when I am pregnant because we all know I will be cheating often! So if I can keep to it as much as possible then great! Working out is nothing new, I go through spurts of devotion and then I get a little too chill about it. Of course right now I am much more devoted :) So why do I tell you all this? Well, I am just giddy over the results!!!! 10 freaking pounds lighter than when I got pregnant with Elinor (and she was my first)!!!! That means I am 20 pounds lighter than when I got pregnant with Charley (which means I don't even want to talk about those days anymore). I actually feel like I can take this pregnancy on and KICK IT IN THE BUTT!! Bring on those cravings! Bring on that "never-ending-pit-in-your-stomach" kind of hunger pains! Because I conquered my worst fears and lost my "I never thought I would lose you so I better just be thrilled with the 2 beautiful children I brought into the world, weight." And now I am ready to to go for this third pregnancy and maybe, just maybe have a little more control over how it effects my body.

First Time for Everything

Elinor is just about 3 1/2 years old. Charley is 19 months old. The time has come for Joe and I to decide if we are a family of 5 or a family of 4. Why must we decide now you ask? Well because neither of us ever wanted there to be a large age gap between our kids. So come May we will begin "trying" (I know the term is horrible) for our third (and Lord willing final) baby. Now I will tell why this is and incredibly significant and momentous occasion. Joe and I have never before been able to plan for a baby. BOTH our first children were surprises! I won't start explaining in a very public blog about how, in our case, our babies were surprises. But BELIEVE me, they were.

Anyways, I just have to sheepishly admit that for someone who has never really ever enjoyed pregnancy all that much, I am kinda actually a little bit EXCITED to start trying....... did I just say that out loud?!?! (Well no, in fact Christie, you did not, you typed it in your blog, moron) Well you get the point. I have also chosen to blog through this pregnancy, if God will's for there to be a pregnancy.

The goals will be :

-To stop an appreciate life exactly as it is at the moment in all it's chaos and exhaustion

-To focus on the differences in every pregnancy I have been through and especially this pregnancy

-To document this pregnancy in a way that will be meaningful to me in years to come

And since I am not a shy girl, this will be on my blog for all to see! Don't worry it will be very appropriate for all audiences. Maybe you will enjoy it! God Bless!

Training Them Up.....

The burden of training my kids up in the Lord has been weighing heavily on me this past year. I often feel extremely inadequate to be doing this job the Lord has given

me to do. I am pretty sure I am not a "grown up" and yet somehow here I am, with the responsibility of these two precious little souls......or that is how it feel. And then I remember (sometimes from a good kick in the pants from dear friends and family) that it is NOT my job to save my children and that God's yoke is indeed light, when we allow Him to carry our burdens for us. I am at my weakest, most devastated and exhausted when I become so selfish as to believe that I am the one who can MAKE my children good, smart, pleasant, christlike etc. because, I, myself am a wonderful, spirit-filled, disciplined, Christlike woman. The problem is, I begin to act a part instead of actually being any of those things and I become further and further away from the Lord because worry and self doubt become an idol to me. The good news is, God, in all His loving kindness, has never allowed me to stray too far. And eventually I am always brought back to my senses and reminded that it is Christ and His word alone that can bring me peace, hope and any wisdom I need in parenting. So with that burden lifted OFF my shoulders, I am then FREE to pursue what truly is my job! And that is to train my children, as best I can, in the Lord and hold to His promises. (Proverbs 22:6) This is when I am deeply grateful for training tools that are biblically sound and fun for my kids. There is so much, can I say, "Crap" out there, even within the Christian genre. That is why, when I do find something that I love, I get REALLY excited about it. Here is a small list of things I am just really, really excited about right now for my kids:

"The Jesus Storybook Bible tells the Story beneath all the stories in the Bible. At the center of the Story is a baby, the child upon whom everything will depend. Every story whispers his name. From Noah to Moses to the great King David—every story points to him. He is like the missing piece in a puzzle—the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together. From the Old Testament through the New Testament, as the Story unfolds, children will pick up the clues and piece together the puzzle. A Bible like no other, The Jesus Storybook Bible invites children to join in the greatest of all adventures, to discover for themselves that Jesus is at the center of God's great story of salvation—and at the center of their Story too."

I am in LOVE with this Bible. I cried when I read the first page. It begins with the premise that all little kids (who grow up to be adults) are smitten with the idea of a prince, a hero, a rescuer...... but that there is no human that can possibly fill this need. However God provided us with the perfect prince, the hero of all heros, the ultimate rescuer, Jesus. This bible bridges the gap between the Old and New Testament for kids that I never fully understood until I was an adult. And most importantly, it is a wonderful aid in evangelizing to my kids. Even though it is a little over Elinor's head right now, it has already opened doors for her to ask great questions about who Jesus is and how much He loves her.

Sovereign Grace Music puts out some really awesome music. And this CD is seriously awesome. There are two things I really love about this cd: 1) The music is actually GOOD! (I even like it for myself even though it is kids music) and 2) The words and message of the songs are straight out of the scriptures. Its not full of silly kid music nonsense but actual words that can be hidden away in my kid's hearts! This particular album focuses on the fruits of the spirit and there is a song for each fruit. Here is an example of one of the songs that I absolutely love. It is jammed full of biblical truth:

Peace, You give me peace

When the storms come and I’m afraid

Peace, You give me peace

When I trust in the words You say

You give me peace

If You can calm the sea Then You can comfort me

If winds obey Your voice Why should I fear their noise

And though my eyes can’t see I know You’re with me

When someone starts to fight And does things I don’t like

I hear Your gentle voice Saying I have a choice

To make an enemy Or to spread Your peace

Isn't that truly beautiful? I just love it.....

And finally, I am REALLY excited about this book. Elinor just got it for her birthday and it is amazing. I have known about R.C. Sproul's children books for awhile now and I have wanted to buy them, but they are a little bit old for my kids so I have held off. But this book is definitely the one to start with. It is so rich with wonderful theology written in a magical fantasy that any little girl or boy would be drawn to. Here is a summary I found:

Summary

In The Lightlings, Dr. R.C. Sproul weaves an allegorical tale that captures the essence of the biblical story of redemption in a manner that will fascinate and delight children. A race of tiny beings known as lightlings are a picture of humanity as they pass through all the stages of the biblical drama - creation, fall, and redemption. In the end, children will understand why some people fear light more than darkness, but why they need never fear darkness again.

So there you have it! When the dog bites, when the bee stings......these are a few of my favorite things :)

Dates, Girlfriends and Church Fellowship

Ok Ok! Its obvious I am kind of a "hot or cold" type of person. I always have been! I am kind of all or nothing when it comes to many extras in my life and blogging is certainly one of them! In fact directly after my last blog about loving working out, I decided to NOT work out until the summer was over! Fortunately it had not effect on my weight loss and I proceeded to reach my goal weight! YAY!!! Anyways, that was a tangent I did not mean to get on. What I would like to blog about is the final 3 "outlets" I have in my life that help me keep my sanity. I am putting them all in the same post because, frankly, I am tired of the topic (I have a difficult time keeping interest in things). But I was raised to finish things I started, so here it goes.

#3 Dates with my wonderful, amazingly handsome husband, Joe

The honest truth is, after a few weeks of a busy schedule, activities with the k

ids

and Joe's long work days, we just miss each other! Joe is always really good about planning dates and finding a babysitter

when he feels we need time alone. We also trade babysitting favors with some of our friends and that way we never need to pay for a babysitter! (Plus we have Grammy in a pinch too:)) Joe is the person I would most like to be with at all times and I find these date nights to be refreshing and they definitely qualify as an "outlet."

#4 Going out with my girlfriends or with the girls in my family

MUCH less frequently I get to go out for a girl night. Mostly these events center around movies coming out in the the theater (in the case of my girlfriends) or birthdays (in the case of my family).

I honestly just LOVE the excuse to get all dressed up and do my makeup a little dramatically and go out for the night. Sometimes these event include a costume party or perhaps

going to someones house and watching a long BBC movie.

Recently, I hosted

a dinner party for some of my girlfriends and I went to Catalina

with the lovely ladies in my family. Friends and family are truly gifts from the Lord and I am grateful that I am able to surround myself with such wonderful ladies in my life.

And Finally #5 Mid Week Bible Study

Joe and I together attend a Shepherding Group on Tuesday nights. It is full of people I care for and those who care for me and my family. The group is full of older and younger people, married couples and single folk, stay at home mom's and working moms etc. We study the scriptures though discussion. I leave Tuesday nights feeling challenged and refreshed spiritually.

ANNNNNNDDDD thats it folks! I finally finished this topic! Thanks for hanging in there with me!

Sweat and Spandex

Outlet #2- The Gym

Working out is the mother of all "Outletting." It is an age old, tried and true form of easing tension, refreshing the mind, letting out aggression etc etc etc. But for me it is a fairly new love affair.

My entire life I have been an active sort of girl, but I was also quite thin and never felt "unhealthy" so I never really cared to commit to a normal exercise routine. In college I had a major achilles injury, which I still struggle with from time to time. Then I got married and was enjoying that too much to care to work out. Then I was working full time and was too tired. Through all of this I still worked out here and there and I still remained thin. But I certainly did not feel "healthy." Then I got pregnant...... (insert sigh). I was sick, I was tired, I was hungry and I gained weight (surprise surprise). Soon after having Elinor, I finally found the motivation to work out consistently. Something woke up within me and I decided I wanted to not only get my body back to normal but I wanted to be healthy...really really healthy.

My workout routine has been a progression and I am sure it will progress some more as I become more fit. But I am really happy with my current routine and for the first time in my life I really feel "addicted" to working out. So here is my current routine

I work out 5 days a week in theory (which is not always possible with 2 kids) And I do a different class each day. All my classes start at 8:30 am and they last an hour

Mon- Advanced Step, Seriously never thought step could be this hard. It is so fun now, but the first week I tried it I cried at the end and almost walked out I was so embarrassed at how slowly I was picking up the steps. Fortunately, I found out that this was a typical reaction to this specific step class (the instructor is a rock star!). People I did not even know where coming up to me and encouraging me saying "it was a right of passage" and that I would love it if I kept with it. So I did and they were right.

Tues- Muscle Conditioning, sort of like a circuit training. We do rounds of leg, stomach and arm exercises. I love this class because it is changing my muscle tone and I LIKE IT!

Wed- BOSU, Seriously the class I dread when I wake up in the morning. This is a BOSU

This class works my every muscle in my body and my endurance until I feel like I am going to pass out. BUT anyone and everyone I have talked to about this class says If any class changes the body it is this one! So far I can agree (however I am still the wimp in the class who is getting water every 10 minutes).

Fri- Power step, This is like a mix between advanced step and muscle conditioning. We take 5 minutes working our heart until it feels like it going to burst, and then we cool down by doing some weight training. This continues for an hour.

Sat- Spin. My first love. This is what I used to do 3 days a week when I was first getting into working out. I still love it, but It wasn't giving me the results I wanted all by itself so I moved on. I will also add that this is the PERFECT class to do while pregnant. It is easy on your joints and your bladder :) I was able to keep it up for the whole 9 months while pregnant with Charley and it made a huge difference in the way I felt after the pregnancy.

So that is my schedule! One day I will run more.....but i really hate running and can't get beyond 3 miles without dying of boredom.

I will leave you with these wise words and inspiration from Olivia Newton John

No Business Like Show Business

I think every Mom would agree that kids can quickly become the center of.......well everything! And it can happen pretty fast whether we intended it or not. We start missing adult conversation, we start losing our patience with our kids way too easily, we start forgetting to pay attention to our husbands, we start thinking "who am I, where am I???" and the list can go on.

So I am going to do a series of posts on the things I do as an outlet.

The first outlet I am going to post on is actually unique because it is not something I do regularly (as in daily, weekly or even monthly). It is something that comes in spurts and it really is a part of who I am. It is Performance in any way, but more specifically I love Musical Theater. I choose this topic first, because I just finished a show yesterday, and it is on my heart and mind.

There are some things I feel I must say about this particular hobby:

1) I am so grateful that this is something my family support me in. They enjoy this being part of my life and if it ever became and idol to me I know they would keep me accountable.

2) This is something that uniquely brings people together. I cannot explain the joy it is to be a part of something with a group of people and know that you have created something great. I have been blessed with making some deep friendships through the performances I have been in. And I realize this is a true blessing from God.

3) I know that God has created me with this love of performing and I am so grateful that I have been given opportunities to cultivate this. But it is only a blessing if it does not get in the way of my relationship with God, or my ability to be the mother and wife I should be, and those things are my priorities.

Ok Let's Go On With the Show (or post in this case):

This past show was due to a Musical Theater workshop that I participated in. It finished off with a Broadway Review, in which all the workshop participants performed as a character they would/could be considered for if they were to actually audition for it. In addition to that we participated in other group numbers throughout the show to make it cohesive. I was given a couple of step out parts beyond "my" song. This was important to me because I felt it showed my ability to change my voice and personality to become any character given me. It was ridiculously fun to be able to jump from a Revolutionary era Newlywed from "1776", to a teenage girl in the 60s from "Bye Bye Birdie", to a peace and love driven hippie in "Hair", and all the characters in between.

Because we performed songs from the show "A Chorus Line" I was required to produce a Headshot. Since I have never actually gone on auditions, I never have needed them. But now that I have them it kinda makes me feel "legit" :) Here are a few of the shots, you'll have to tell me which one you like best

Here is "my song" It is from the play 1776, and I am Martha Jefferson a young newlywed singing about her sweet Thomas and why she loves him so enjoy!:

Here is group number from Bye Bye Birdie called "Telephone Hour." We are all high schoolers who are enthralled with the gossip of two of our friends getting "pinned." I have a solo at the beginning of this song and the first half is definitely the cutest part, the camera man was a little bit behind on getting his camera out :)

And finally, here we are doing our bows at the end. I wish I could show you the whole show! :)

My Mother's Day Wishlist......

Just for fun......no real expectations involved!

Wii- $199 @ bestbuy.com

itouch- $199 @ store.apple.com

1 month membership to Cardio barre- $100 (give or take)

A professional spring cleaning- $200

This Leather Jacket- $346.50 @ shopbop.com

A mommy necklace-$75 @ figsandginger.com $125@ heartandstonejewelry.com

Knife Set- I go back and forth between Cutco and Wusthof, but since my dear friend Annika Velji (www.goodeatssd.blogspot.com) and Ina Garten both swear by Wusthof..... $130 @ Amazon.com

Spinning Cleates- $94 @ Zappos.com

Airbrush Tanning Package $150 for 5 Tans @ www.bliss-makeup-artistry.com