YOGA!

I am no expert. I’ve been practicing for years, but I still consider myself a beginner. I remember using some amazing videos in the beginning to get my basic poses and form down before I attempted studio classes. I still do videos religiously to this day, but I also like to create my own routine using a yoga book I have.I loved my videos because my fave instructor (Tara Stiles) made yoga accessible. There are a lot of purists out there (a few of my friends included) who have tried introducing me to yoga their way… which was in-depth, meditative stuff with a lot more dialogue than I would have liked. I respect yoga A LOT, and my respect/knowledge grows every day… but to be honest, what “lured me in” was Tara’s simplicity- how she broke down her workouts into WORKOUTS, just jumping in, rather than just talking for the first 10-20 minutes.

Over the years I have incorporated the “in-depth, meditative stuff” into my yoga practice as well. Im a calmer more easy going person because of it!

Tara got me at video 1 by making me WORK (the beginners videos just go over basic poses, but whewwww, I sucked big time my first few run-throughs). After my first 5-minute video, despite my massive inability to do most of the things Tara was doing smoothly, I was hooked. I thought “hmmm.. I can do this… the stretching feels nice and I just broke a mini-sweat” The next day I did two videos. The next day I did three… etc I love yoga because your accomplishments are measurable- tangible within your own body and mind. I just FELT AMAZING after yoga every single time. My body felt it the next day, but the lighter, easier stretching routines would loosen it up. I never felt pressured.. I was just loving it, despite the difficulty, and wanted to be able to move with the instructors fluid grace and strength. And every day, I was getting closer.My fingertips initially couldn't reach my toes. Really, they stopped about 4 inches above. I was not a flexible person. Athletic yes, flexible, no. But there was a difference after about two weeks!

Palms flat on the ground.

I have to keep saying this… I RESPECT yoga. I too, will continue to learn more about the practice and the philosophy behind it (what little I know, I love, and think it has already made me a calmer, gentler person),I want to practice just about all the styles of yoga in a studio by a guru as often as I can. But starting this way has made it, accessible for ME. My interest in yoga was never piqued by the yoga classes I took back in highschool... It was an organic moment; me at home, on my new yoga mat, struggling to breathe properly while stretching my body, when I finally thought “huh… this is… gratifying… and hard… and awesome.” The love was born. And now here I am, blogging about yoga ...

I feel more flexible every day. Stronger. Happier. Calmer. My morning doesn’t start for me, mentally or physically, until I finish at LEAST a few minutes of an easy stretching routine. Then the day is clear. When I tense up/stress out later in the afternoon, it’s back to the mat for another session of mind-clearing yoga. What I REALLY like about yoga is that while you are practicing, you cannot think about anything else but EXACTLY what you are physically doing. Concentrating on that + breathing + relaxing into your muscles is incredibly therapeutic. I think the psychological benefits of working out tension through your body AND forcing your mind to also essentially “work out” are the reasons why everybody says that yoga is a great form of stress relief. You can zone it out while running, but you can’t ever lose focus while practicing yoga. And what it does for your body….

I’m not a judgy person. I’ll be the first to admit I tried yoga again for the physical benefits only (I wanted a “yoga” body). But although my love for it started superficially, it is what drew me in to WANT to commit fully (though gradually). I don’t feel pressured by anything… I just WANT to get stronger, and hit those crazy poses that are reblogged so often on Tumblr. 30 minutes every morning and 30 minutes at night is what I am doing now, and I can’t tell you how great it makes me feel during the day and before I go to sleep.

Namaste <3

I get by with a little help from my friends..

I have been the biggest little sick girl the past 2 weeks. Long story short..

Week 1: Normal cold, took it easy, and felt much better by the end of the week.

Shortly there after I thought I had allergies!!

Week 2: Bacterial cold, low grade fever, my nose running like a freakin' FAUCET! MISERABLE.

THANK GOODNESS Jamie was on his week off. He took care of me, and took care of Eli. Such a great, and amazing husband! He even managed to stay on top of the house hold chores, yard work, and grocery shopping. What a PEACH!

Luckily the day before I got really sick we had a BBQ with our awesome friends, and they sent us home with tons of leftovers! Moose steaks, chicken, pork...it got us through quite a few meals so Jamie didn't have to do TOO much cooking! So thankful!

My regular workouts were canned for 2 whole weeks! I just did light stuff when I felt I could. I diligently stuck with my yoga twice a day, but man, I couldn't breathe, so I was fighting through each session. Today I was finally able to breathe normally through my whole session. Feels good to be back! Not entirely 100% yet, but Ill be there soon!!

All in all it's been good though I guess. Elijah is finally sleeping through the nights, he was forced to skip 2 to 3 naps over memorial day weekend. We had so much going on he didn't sleep most afternoons for about 5 days! Good thing though, because now he is used to it, and when he goes to sleep he STAYS asleep ALL night! 9pm-5am wakes, has a bottle, and then sleeps till about 8am!

It has been SOO nice! Especially since daddy went back to work on graves, and I'm still needing some much needed rest to bounce back! So I apologize to all my friends who I had to cancel plans with! This coming weeks will be nice, summer is finally here! Time to cash in all those "rain checks"!!!

Big thank you to my hubs, friends, Castle Rock Medical, Smith Pharmacy, kleenex tissues, thera flu, day quil, and nyquil. I owe ya one! ;O)

Happy anniversary birthday!

We spent the last 5 days in Colorado, celebrated our 5th year wedding anniversary, and Jamie's 28th birthday! We had a blast in CO! We absolutely adore it there. We constantly talk about picking up and moving to Boulder, not that its anything serious right now, but man, if ever it could workout, we would do it!

Its the best down there, Nat and Nick, shopping, hiking,snowboarding...man and the scenery! Ahhhh anyone wanna buy my house?? Lol

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Ready To Be Parents Again?

The "perfect" family size, spacing children as closely, or as far apart as we please. Family planning has come a long way. It used to be that women birthed babies frequently, and at most times unexpectedly.

When my husband and I first talked about family, we had decided that we would like to strive for a large family of 5. We both come from families of 5, children spaced, ages 3 years apart. Without really every contemplating it too heavily, we thought it was the perfect plan. Now that we have had Eli, our thoughts have shifted.

When I first held my little bundle of 5 lbs 8 ounces of joy, I immediately was bitten with a mommy hood bug. I already wanted to try, for yet another baby. I guess we could all partly blame that on the morphine? Now that my son is 6 months, the thought of having another child has not subsided like I thought it would. It has only progressively gotten worse.

Which brings me to the question. Are we ready to be parents again? I believe it is in my next child's best interest if I try to hold out for a few more months before we try again. Ideally be pregnant when our son is at least the age of 1, my husband and I have come to an agreement that we would like try to space them closer together. Studies have shown that children spaced closely together have less sibling rivalry, they have more in common, play great together, and can prevent any struggles children may have with the welcoming of a new baby.

We understand that having children spaced so closely together is going to be difficult. Doable, fun, joyous, but yes difficult. However that will only be in the younger years. Perks to the trade would include my children sharing experiences, toys, clothes, and fun, as well as us as parents getting over the special challenges of the baby and toddler years as quickly as possible!

The only thing left to contemplate, would be me as a mother, and my well being. Am I ready physically, and emotionally, to be a parent again?

Studies have shown that 18 to 23 months apart is ideal. Pregnancies spaced less than one year have had an increased risk of low birth weight and or preterm birth.

It is very important for a mother to take good care of herself between pregnancies, especially if you plan on spacing them closer together. Women need time to lose their pregnancy weight, increase their exercise strength, improve their body tone, (especially their abdominal and pelvic muscles.) Most important of all, nutrition. Having a baby depletes you of your iron. One needs to be sure that their iron levels are regular, and that their body is nutritionally ready for another pregnancy.

Having children "back to back" can have many rewards. As mothers and women, we just need to remember that it is very important that we take care of ourselves physically, and mentally during and between each pregnancy.

What I spend money on.

" A penny saved is a penny earned."

I have been reflecting on my spending habits these days. I am quite proud of my accomplishments! It used to be that I would spend as much as I wanted, whenever I wanted. It was fun, it felt good, I had lots of "stuff."

I have always been good at saving money, but I am even better spending it. I think it's because I grew up the first 5 years of my life literally having nothing. My biological father had a drug habit. He would sell our clothes, and furniture for drugs. We opened up cardboard boxes with donated toys from the community for our Christmas. We ate a lot of canned sloppy joes (gross)!

I was 4 when things started to look up. We met my dad (step dad). He did well for himself. He fell in love with my mom and us children, and took her, and her 4 children under his wing. Don provided quite well for us all.

My dad did so much for us, paid for us to be in just about every school sport there was, buy us horses, bikes, snowboards, clothing etc. I believe most important of all, he taught us how to save money, and learn how to budget. It was nice to be taken care of, and have "things."

Eventually I got married, and living in Oregon, Jamie and I started out with having no money. We ate ramen noodles, or Carl's Jr. a lot ( I worked at a fast food joint, so it was free.) I didn't ever have enough money to buy anything extra, we lived paycheck to paycheck. Paid our bills, and that was all we could manage. We were happy mind you, living a minimum wage lifestyle.

However we moved back to Wyoming, Jamie and I landed well paying jobs. I again became quite materialistic! I wanted everything I laid my eyes on, and I bought it. Then Jamie started making even more money, and I started seeing him less and less...oh the joys of the oil field! So I had a void to fill, and I filled it with spending money on STUFF!

I am happy to say that I have found a happy balance, and I save even MORE, and spend even less! It feels really great.

Now that I have Elijah, I am more grown up and responsible. Before Eli was here these are things I would spend money on.

•Pedicures and Manicures Facials, and massages

•Haircuts and colors

•Home decor

•Clothing ( I still find clothes that have tags on them)

•Makeup

•Electronics

•Eating out at restaurants

•STUFF I can't even begin to remember lol

Now my spending habits have rhyme and reason! Now my money goes towards things like this:

•Diapers/wipes/formula/clothing- Things for Eli.

•FOOD. Grocery shopping. I mean I spent money on food previously, but now that I stay home I have MORE TIME to do one of my FAVORITE things, COOK and BAKE. I stay away from most items that are frozen...bad bad bad bad! I LOVE raw, fresh foods, and cooking healthy, fulfilling meals from scratch.

•Donating to credible foundations

•Activities such as city league volleyball/Zumba/swim lessons for Eli.

Really that is pretty much it! I do facials, manis, and pedis in the comfort of my own home! I still get my hair done, but I do it every 3 months, and I quit coloring it, gonna let me natural color come in! I am a mom, so I really don't wear makeup, and I have such a huge array of clothing, that there is no need to buy any at the moment!

I have come a long way over the years, some of you might find this blog topic a little silly. I however feel a need to celebrate my accomplishment, BY TAKING A TRIP TO NEW ZEALAND! hahaha no no no...by just posting a simple blog, to share with my loved ones. :O)