Thursday, February 28, 2013

Treadmill Intervals

Yesterday I completed gym workout #2 for the week.  After Alex got off work we headed to the gym for a treadmill date.  Eleanor hung out in Childwatch while I tackled some intervals. 
Lately I have been downloading treadmill workouts from various blogs and websites and tweaking to work for me.  I think my expectations for performance are still too high because I typically cannot achieve what I set out to accomplish.  So yesterday my goal was achievement.  I put together this interval mix with determination to finish. 

The first 5 minutes walking were easy.  How fast 5 minutes fly when you are just walking.  The next 5 minutes were the worse!  When I am out of practice, treadmill running is such a mind game.  All I wanted to do was quit.  I pushed through knowing the next 7 minutes would be more entertaining.

I did 20 seconds on, 40 seconds off seven times.  You can increase or decrease the speed to meet your needs.  My speeds are recorded in parentheses.  I worked up a good sweat by the end of the first set of sprints.  Then on to another five minutes of steady treadmill running.  Again, these minutes ticked by very slowly, but alas it was on to the last set of sprints. 

I counted these seven sprints down one at a time.  Six to go.  Five to go.  Four.  Three.  Then I even started counting them out loud to Alex to help me through.  Two to go.  One.  DONE!  I reduced the speed to a walk for just a minute and then hopped off the treadmill to walk the track with Alex for a cool down. 

There was a time in my life when 30 minutes on a treadmill didn't hardly seem like a sufficient workout.  These days it is an accomplishment!  My next workout for this week...a 5k race this Saturday!  Wish me luck.  It's my first race post-baby--on my birthday no less! 

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

WIAW-making it healthy

Good morning!  I asked and you answered.  What does healthy mean to you?

"Happy with yourself."

"Eating to live, not living to eat. Accepting and loving my imperfections because they make me 'me.' Giving my body physical activity, but realizing I am not perfect and may not be able to achieve that everyday."

"To me, healthy means striving to eat as many whole foods as possible, but not letting the idea of perfection take over. It means enjoying life and savoring a solid workout as much as watching New Girl with my feet kicked up at night. It's about that dang word we all strive for- balance."

"I enjoy following the vegan lifestyle; which is a healthy one."

"For me, eating healthy is following the Weston A. Price principles when eating." (I need to do some research and find out what this means)

"Drink lots of water and just listen to your body." 

Well my body is saying- enough crap!  So yesterday I attempted to make healthy decisions as I navigated the day.
Oatmeal (1/2 cup rolled oats, 1/2 cup soy milk, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 banana.  Craisins, Walnuts, unsweetened coconut mixed in and topped with 1 tbsp sunflower seed butter)

This was the healthier option in the house if you consider cupcakes breakfast.  Resist the urge!

After breakfast I made it to the gym for a Holly workout.  I left sweaty yet energized.  Healthy choice #2 checked off the list.  Holly's class will always motivate me to the gym.  As will friendly tweets from friends!
Lunch was a smorgasbord of leftovers from the party.  Fruit salad, cucumbers with vegan spinach dip, mock chicken salad and a few tortilla chips on the side.  It wasn't enough so minutes later I was back up for this snack:
Large spoonful of sunflower seed butter and a cup of tea.

Still not enough because then I poured myself a glass of OJ.
And finally stopped with a handful of chocolate chips.
In the afternoon I had meetings and took Eleanor to the babysitter.  On my way home I swung by to pick up Alex and we headed to the grocery store for supplies for dinner.  I choose our grocery store based on the quality of samples so my afternoon snack started with strawberries and bread samples from Harris Teeter.
We found a special little treat at the store that we couldn't resist.
At home, I whipped up a real snack while making breakfast--er, I mean dinner.
A small amount of granola topped with soy milk and a large amount of fruit salad x2.

At fellowship group last night we celebrated breakfast for dinner.  I whipped up this oatmeal bake from Caitlin's blog.  I doubled the recipe.  I think it is one of the most delicious breakfast items we eat.  You should try it to.  

Here's the plate:
Plain pancake, vegan sausage, fruit, quiche and Chicken and Waffle chips.  Yum!
I actually really did enjoy these.  And in the interest of full disclosure, I probably had double what is currently on my plate above.  I also had another piece of sausage.  
Oh just for fun I will throw in a photo of the babe. 

I went to bed early last night, and was full enough from dinner so I resisted the urge to eat dessert when I got home.  I really had to resist that nagging urge.  For me it is hard when there are cupcakes, carrot cake, ice cream, GS cookies, and more in the house.  But I put myself to bed instead.  And maybe today I will take Brittany's advice and throw it all away!
So how did I fair?  Better, but not ideal.  Looking at my day I realize there are next to no veggies in my diet.  Of course this day was an exception since we had breakfast twice.  I could have done better by adding a veggie omelet in the morning to balance it out.

My other constant struggle is snacking after lunch.  It seems like I can never get satisfied so I return to the kitchen repeatedly trying to fill my bottomless stomach.  In reality, I think I'm eating out of boredom, routine, or emotion rather than a need for more food.  Today I'm trying a cup of tea after lunch and a planned afternoon snack to get me through to dinner.  

I agree with many of the statements above.  Especially that health=balance.  In general I am a healthy person, but I have teetered away from a good balance and just need to slide closer back to the middle.  For me I think it will require regular workouts and more veggies.  Those two slight adjustments will help me find a center.  So my small goals from this food journal experiment include hitting my 5-a day (3 of those being veggie!) fruits and veggie.  I will also aim for 3-4 workouts at the gym each week, with most other days including at least a walk, or some sort of activity.  

Who wants to help keep me accountable?

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

What does healthy mean to you?

It's cold outside.  Rainy and cold.  Uggh.  It makes drinking water very difficult.  My minimum 64oz of H2O are being consumed in the form of hot tea today.  I hope that counts.

I made it to the gym this morning.  That feels like an epic accomplishment in this weather.  When all I really want to do is lay around all day, nap with Eleanor and watch reruns of Gilmore Girls, getting to the gym is a feat.  As usual, I feel so much better now that I have sweat a little.  Holly kicks our butts in Cardio Strength class.  Goes the saying- Hurts So Good.  I will be sore tomorrow. 

Lately I feel very unhealthy.  It could be the the 2 glasses of wine before bed each night, the countless Girl Scout Cookies, or the lack of motivation to get to the gym.  Either way, I am ready for a refresher.  I take forgranted that I am "healthy."  I don't eat meat (not true, I had a few pieces of chicken the other night), that makes me healthy, right?  I don't eat dairy (also not true), so that also makes me healthy right?
Have you ever heard of someone going vegetarian and then living off of peanut butter and bagels?  Well, that is where I've been these last few weeks.  It's like I mention not wanting to worry about food anymore on the blog and take that as license to eat whatever I want.  And because it is a vicious cycle, well I wind up worrying even more about food.  I want to be healthy, but unless I define what that means, I'm not sure I can get there.  So what does healthy mean?  I would love to know your thoughts.  What does "healthy" mean to you?  This is not a rhetorical question!  Please come out of the blog "closet" and leave me a note telling me how you define healthy. 

It's time to get motivated.  It's time to quit making excuses.  It's time to really live life! 

Monday, February 25, 2013

Weekend Things

My baby girl was baptized yesterday.  It was beautiful and sweet and lovely and blessed.  We had family in town and a party with over 30 people.  It was such a wonderful time.  I never stopped to take a single photo, so thankfully my dear friend Whitney was in charge of photos for me.  It may be a few days before I have them to share, but I just wanted to tell you how amazing our weekend was!

While Sunday was the highlight, the entire weekend was so much fun.  Friday night we were out "late" (past 9pm) at a missions night at Grace Covenant.  We got to "travel" to different countries and learn about missionaries and projects happening all over, from South Africa and Kenya to Linefork, Kentucky.

Saturday morning was so busy.  We spent the entire first half of the day shopping for the party.  We spent at least an hour at Hobby Lobby picking out decor.  The rest of the day featured the 'party before the party.'  Whitney came over to help me make decorations.  She is so talented!  Then Alex's sisters arrived from Chicago.  Finally Alex's dad, Dave and fiance, Lisa made it.  We spent the evening chowing down on pizza, sipping wine, and prepping food.  Again, no photos, but lots of fun!

Fast forward to Sunday morning.  Busy, busy, busy.  I woke early to finalize all the food prep.  I actually had plenty of time and never felt stressed about hosting.  I just love when everything goes perfectly, and everything was wonderful.  I did manage to catch one picture Sunday morning:
Leftover pizza for breakfast.

Off to church.  A wonderful baptism and fantastic sermon on -you guessed it- Truth.  We hurried home to put out all the food and drinks and our guests began to arrive.
I can't wait to share all of the party details with you.  It was my very favorite party ever.  So many wonderful friends and family to share such an amazing occasion with.

And then Sunday evening we curled up on the couch with my sisters-in-law to watch the Oscar's, eat Chinese take out and Ben and Jerry's ice cream.  We all made predictions before the awards began and have a friendly competition to see who wins.

This may be my most boring post ever, just recapping the events of the weekend without many photos and stories...I promise there will be more to come because this is a weekend I always want to remember!

Friday, February 22, 2013

Thanksgiving

How can that smile not brighten your day? Around here it is awful gloomy outside, but with this girl around it is always sunny.  She brings the sunshine into my world.  I know, cheesy, but so true!

Lately I fear I have been portraying a lackluster attitude on the blog.  It could all be in my own head, but with topics like wrecked cars, dog poop, food addiction, failed vacation plans, traffic jams, and mean girls I am afraid I may give the impression that my life is a bit needy or depressing.  I hope what you read through all the crazy is that my attitude is positive and uplifting through it all.  I lean on God when things get hard, and I spell it all out on the blog to help me deal.  But every morning I wake up with new resolve and cheery disposition because that is life.  And after all, I have this sweet girl to share my days with, and an amazing husband to anticipate home in the afternoons...And we have Girl Scout cookies to make life happy!
Truth: I love these cookies and can't get enough!  I want to hoard hundreds of boxes in my freezer (hello food addiction) and not let anyone else at them!  The Girl Scouts are smart, only selling them once a year.  They have me cornered.  Alex and I only bought one box each of our favorites.  Just 4 boxes total.  But yesterday I was excited to see them lined up at bible study so I could try one of every kind. 

My all-time favorites are the Thin Mints (duh!) and the Samoas.  Long live the name Samoa.  Third in line would have to be the Tagalongs (or Peanut Butter Patties) and fourth are the Do-si-dos (Peanut Butter Sandwich).  Honorable mention: the Trefoils (shortbread).  I love the classic and standard and old ones.  We did buy a box of the Thank Yous this year and I like them, but they aren't very different from a Keebler cookie.  Then I heard about the Lemonades.  Not to be confused with the Lemon Smiles.  Apparently there are two bakeries that make GS cookies.  One makes the Lemon Smiles, one makes the Lemonades.  Where we live the Lemonades are hard to come by...or so I'm told.  Somehow a mom at the gym smuggled me a box in to the state.  I have yet to try them but considering I love all things lemon-flavored, I can't wait!

Ok, so make that five boxes we bought!

Want to know what else I'm loving?  My best friends.  Which pretty sums up my entire friend base, because I don't just have friends.  I have best friends.  There is no time to waste on casual friendships.  When I make a friend, I go all-in!  It is no secret I like to spend time with friends.  Monday nights are girl's nights with Sara and Jill and now a new friend April.  Mondays or Tuesdays I take Holly's class at the gym with either Jenna or Emily.  I don't go to the gym alone, ever.  I always need a friend.  Which is why I met Jenna and Brittney for a gym date this morning.  Thursday mornings I have recruited a small possy to attend bible study with me.  Thank you Brittney and Katie.  And Thursday evenings I attend another bible study with Jenna and a new circle of friends.  Tuesday nights I look forward to time with Shannon and Elizabeth and Katie and Denise at fellowship group.  And I can't forget to mention my oldies but goodies Brandy and Melis- we squeeze in time whenever we can.  And days shopping with Vanessa.  Afternoons with Maureen.  Game nights with Carrie.  Then there is Jess, and Jennifer and so many, many more that I am not naming, but that doesn't mean I am leaving you out.  I am just running out of room.  I just love to be with my friends.  They mean the world to me. 
Lunch and a walk with my new friends Brittney and Katie!
Lately I have been blessed with many new friends and I couldn't be happier.  God has really placed some amazing women in my life who enrich my everyday.  He has always provided for me support and encouragement and fellowship in the shape of like-minded, spiritual women.  They help me grow as a woman, a wife, a mom, and most importantly as a Christian.  Today I am thankful for my many friends.  I love you all!

Thursday, February 21, 2013

One Year Ago

One year ago today I totalled my hubby's car.  That means one year ago today we became a one-car family.  Honestly for me, it hasn't been all that hard.  After all, I am the one with the car most days of the week.  Poor Mr. Alex has not had a car these last 52 days!  He deserves all the credit for surviving as a one-car family.  Of course so do our wonderful friends that graciously help us out. 

There are benefits to being a one-car family.  We only pay insurance on one car which is a significant savings.  We only pay tax and inspection fees on one car.  Again, a significant savings.  I don't believe we are saving any money on gas with just one car since most afternoons I drive to the school and back to pick up Alex anyway.  And we are driving our gas-guzzling Jeep everywhere instead of putting most of the miles on the efficient Honda. 

When the car was wrecked the insurance company paid us out a sizable sum of money. We could have used that money as a down payment on a new car.  In hindsight, perhaps we should have done just that.  But at the time we were trying to sell off possessions anyhow and neither of us believed we would still be in the states a year from then.  So we opted to pay a big chunk of our debt down instead.  We had no way of knowing just what the Lord would bring in one-year's time, although I am certain he had already started growing our baby inside of me then.  This day, one year ago, was also five weeks (to the day) before I found out I was five weeks pregnant.  Interesting, no?
Side note: while looking for the above photos I stumbled on this old blog post.  I literally laughed out loud reading my cravings that I believed were related to the 7 foods fast.  Those cravings were 100% pregnancy cravings and I hadn't even realized it yet!  Hilarity!

Ok, so back to the car sitch.  It is obvious we are tired of our one-car family status.  It worked before Eleanor, but now to pick up Alex takes a whole lot of preparation and time.  And patience.  We are desperately praying for a relief from our current situation.  Money is still very tight and we just abhor the idea of car payments.  Pray with us to make the right choices and decisions as we walk down this car buying path, will you?

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

A great day

What does a great day consist of in your world?  Me?  Well it would start with being on time.  To anything.  If I'm on time to everything, then it is even greater!  Today was that day.  8am meeting.  Check.  9:30 coffee date.  Check.  11am to the sitter's.  Check.  11:30 to a networking lunch.  Check.  Those are some pretty amazing feats when juggling a baby and a puppy and all of their needs.  So today was pretty great.
And what makes a day not so great?  Cleaning up dog messes.  Recently we have started allowing Penny upstairs.  Before we had a baby gate up so she couldn't go anywhere beyond the first floor.  Since our first floor is just tile and hardwoods it all worked really well with potty training.  But then our little escape-artist decided to learn how to climb the baby gate.  So we took it down and gave her free reign of the stairs.  All bedroom doors are kept closed to keep her out of our things, but she can roam the hallway and stairs as she pleases. 

So now our little dog has decided that the proper place to use the restroom is on the landing on the stairs.  Super.  She was all but potty-trained before, so what gives now?  Does she think the carpet is grass?  Needless to say, cleaning up 3 messes on the carpet today was not helping make my day great.  Coming home from my "on-time high" to a smelly house was not very fun.  I then proceeded to lock her away in the garage while I scrubbed carpets and mopped floors.  Not nice Penny, not nice.

All-in-all this Wednesday was a pretty fantastic day.  Busy, but good.  I try not to wish days away when it comes to Eleanor.  I don't want her to grow up too fast.  But when it comes to Penny, I am anxiously awaiting the day when she is no longer a curious, misbehaving pup.  Yes, I'm wishing those days away! 

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Truth be told

So truth is the theme of the year it seems.  It is the series we are working on in church and it is the bible study I am taking on Thursday mornings.  We are asking tough questions like Who is God? And finding the truth to such a loaded question is not easy.  Luckily, while seeking answers to these hard questions, I am finding truths to so many other small questions.  I am recognizing the lies that I'm living and changing my ways of thinking.

This week's lie:

I will always struggle with food addiction/disordered eating.

Man, this one is hard to tackle.  Do you have an addiction in your life?  Are you convinced it will just always be with you and you will never be free?  Once upon a time I smoked cigarettes.  And boy was I ever addicted.  In my short life, I was addicted to cigarettes for nearly 10 years!  Back then, if asked, I would have told you I could never quit.  It was not in my power.  And I was right.  Quitting smoking was not in my power.  I couldn't quit.  Only by the grace of God do I sit here now, noticing others smoking, and realizing how free I am from that addiction.

Someday I will also quit this food addiction.  Someday I will be free.  Because that is who God created me to be. 

Matthew 6:28-34  “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
            

I just finished reading in Exodus about God providing manna and quail for the Israelites.  “I will rain down bread from heaven for you." he tells them.  I know that God provides every need that I have, and like the Israelites I tend to doubt and lose faith.  I toil each day with thoughts of food, needing and wanting more And yet I know it is all there for me.  It is provided.  It deserves no attention and stress.  Some day I will get this.  Someday my emotions will no longer be tied to something that was meant to fulfill and satisfy me on a purely physical level.  I will look to God to fill that emotional gap in me, instead of food.  I know that this is true.  And I pray for it to come.  

Maybe half the battle is recognizing I am living a lie.  Each time my brain switches to the lie, I will remind myself of the truth.  God is my provider.  God is my comfort.  Not food.  

What lies are you buying into?  What is the truth and how can you remind yourself? 

Monday, February 18, 2013

Saturday for the win

Quite the day we had here on Saturday.  It was slightly random, but felt oh.so.normal.  I mean that as normal "Alex and Tanya"-before baby, and yet all along on Saturday we had Eleanor and even Penny with us.  It makes me feel really amazing knowing that we are still us, just a better version of us now.  Get what I'm saying?  Well on to the fun.

First Friday Evening:
Matthew singing so pretty at HEbrews.  We only lasted until about 9pm when I was finally too tired to stay out any later.  Eleanor, on the other hand, had no problem being out past her bedtime.
Then Saturday morning Alex headed off to a class at the church while I stayed behind with the babe and pup, packing up our things and visiting with a dear friend.  Once Alex was home we joined up with Pat and Carrie to head to the mountains for a fun getaway.
Our plans were foiled by a winter weather advisory however.  Maybe that is the one big difference between us now versus then (before baby).  Trying to make it up a mountain in a snow storm seems a little less tempting with our precious cargo.
 We made the best of the afternoon by stopping for a wine tasting at Raffaldini.
Drinking in the afternoon always inhibits common sense and so clearly eating at the No. 1 China Buffet was high on the to-do list after the tastings.  Eleanor thought our decision was so funny she decided to let out a little laugh for the occasion.  Yup, her very first laugh was directed at Pat and Carrie sitting across from us at the Chinese Buffet.  Priceless.
Our evening wrapped with more wine (clearly) and even a little champagne and Katan.  Katan is my new favorite game; probably only because I have won the last two times we played with Pat and Carrie.  Typically I'm not a game person.  And typically I never win.  Which is why it took me a whole extra turn and Carrie pointing it out, before I even realized I had won.  Maybe the wine had something to do with that!
So two nights in a row we stayed out past Eleanor's bedtime and you know what?  Nothing happened.  The world didn't fall apart and the sky didn't collapse.  We are all still alive.  And she never missed a wink of sleep.  I will certainly be sad when she is too old to sleep anywhere in her car seat.

Friday, February 15, 2013

2-day Recap

Look at these V-day beauties.  Twins from miles apart.  It was just coincidence that we decided to dress Kolbie and Eleanor in similar outfits, but it sure made my heart melt.  I miss my little niece, although by the looks of this photo, she sure is catching up to Eleanor's chubby cheeks!  Not so little anymore!
So Eleanor and I had a great day out yesterday.  After my date morning with Alex, we hit the road for Bible study.
Even this traffic jam couldn't stop my wonderful mood.  I was late, but made it in time for the small group study.  Afterward I went for a long stroll with my best friends Melisa and Brandy.  And then sped off to Salisbury for a quick meeting before finally getting home around 3:30pm.  It was quite a full day.  But Eleanor was perfect the whole time.  It seemed that her timing was impeccably planned, nursing at all the right times, napping during all my meetings.  Thank you Eleanor.
Oh, did I mention lunch yesterday?  I filled up on cupcakes and cookies at Bible study:
I raved about how excited I was to have fellowship group and not have to feel the pressure of the big holiday last night.  Well fellowship was cancelled and we had to regroup.
Take and bake pizzas from Papa Murphy's with a glass of Pinot Grigio and an episode of Top Chef.  I was skeptical of Papa Murphy's concept.  If it's takeout, why do I have to cook it?  But the pizza turned out wonderfully and we enjoyed a nice evening at home with our happy little family.
Dessert S'more Pizza!

Today was a bit of a repeat.  A busy day full of meetings out of the house, followed by dinner and wine at home.  Oh, and I also had cake for lunch:
The birth center where Eleanor was born had a big celebration today.  100 birthdays and counting!
Eleanor even made the cake!  So clearly I had to eat that slice.  We ran around Statesville all day.  We stopped by this little fellow's house to say hello in between meetings.  
Thanks Cam and Jess for having us!

Now we are getting ready to head out to watch Matthew play at a local coffee shop. 
Eleanor has been helping him practice for weeks.  She is his audience of one!  Have a great weekend friends!

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Date Morning

I mentioned yesterday that Valentine's Day was going to be low key this year.  Low key, yes, but no less special.  Alex and I rolled out of bed at 5am and nestled on the couch with a blanket, coffee and an episode of Top Chef, our new favorite. 

His Valentine's Treat:
A box of donut holes. 

For me, new stove top drip pans.  It's ok, they were on my list.  I remember once at church during a sermon, Doug mentioned that he learned the hard way to not buy kitchen gadgets and small appliances for his wife for any special occasion.  He warned the men in the congregation to heed his advice.  "Ear Muffs!" I exclaimed.  Alex does not need to listen to that nonsense.  Kitchen gadgets and small appliances are welcome always.  Especially if it means I don't have to scrub old drip pans!

For the record, Alex also surprised me with a piece of art for the house that has the words to "Amazing Grace."  I am very excited about this gift.  We have wonderful artwork in the house, but I want to begin adding pieces that represent our faith so Eleanor will grow up with positive words surrounding her always. 

Speaking of Eleanor, she woke up around 6am to hang out with us.  Valentine's Day is made even more special by her presence.  Have I mentioned lately how lucky we are to have her? 
Eleanor made her daddy a special Valentine's Day card this year:
While she napped yesterday, I padded her foot with an ink stamp and pressed it into the shape of a heart on one side of the card.
Pretty cute, huh? I am no creative genius; clearly this idea came from Pinterest.  I think Alex really liked it though.  Now the question is, do we save it?  I am a minimalist and I am treading in uneasy territory with all this baby paraphernalia.  I nearly cried this morning when the onesie I put on Eleanor didn't fit.  Save it! Save it all!

Tonight I am thankful we have fellowship group.  It takes the stress and pressure off V-day.  Instead of trying to find a babysitter and deal with long wait times at restaurants, and make a big night of it, we will relax with friends we love the most.  Ultimately these are the evenings we always enjoy best anyhow.  When there is so much pressure on a date night it typically leads to disappointment (the food wasn't good enough, too expensive, etc.) 

What are your plans for tonight?  Happy Valentine's Day!

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Hump Day

Lately I have been quite all over the place: from Mean Girls, to Weight Loss, to my personal Faith Journey.  I feel like I have been dropping one big bomb after another.  So today let's keep it a little lighter for hump day. 

Usually on Mondays I recap my entire weekend, reliving all the fun.  We skipped over that this week, so here are just some highlights:

On Saturday we made the most of the beautiful weather and took the family for a hike.
Eleanor cozied up in the Ergo and slept most of the way.
Later, we swung by the winery to do a quick tasting and enjoy a glass in the fresh outdoors.  It was the perfect Saturday, followed up by a spontaneous dinner out for onion rings and veggie burgers.
I don't know why I even recap Sundays, it is always the usual: church, and this week we did some grocery shopping.  A lovely weekend indeed.

Today Alex had a half-day at school before teacher meetings so I brought Eleanor up to his work for the very first time.
The timing was perfect.  That happy place between nursing and nap time.  She smiled and cooed for all the teachers, counselors and staff.  We received so many compliments.  It was fun to show her off.  Look at that proud daddy face on Alex!

And now we are home relaxing on this rainy, dreary day.  Tonight is Girl's Night at my house.  Come if you want to drink some wine and eat some Valentine's chocolates.  And tomorrow is the big V-day.  Any plans?  Do you remember Date Mornings from way back when?  Alex and I have one planned for tomorrow morning to celebrate.  Whether we actually pull ourselves out of slumber will be another story!  This year is going to be low key.  No babysitters, no gifts.  Just our little family and time together.