Coming to an end.

Once Christmas time is over, I am always amazed at how quickly the year flew by. This year was very busy for us. From purchasing our first home, having a baby, and starting to homeschool, there have been many changes for our family.  We spent the year laughing, learning, growing closer with our relationship with Christ, and our friends. We flew back to NY, got to spend time with family on the east coast, walked for suicide prevention, witness Jordan complete his first triathlon, and run the tough mudder together. Overall, we’ve grown in many ways over this past year. They say photos are worth 1,000 words, so here you go, our year in review:

We welcomed our third boy to the family!

Zachary loves the outdoors as much as his brothers.

Carter turned 5

Zachary now sits, crawls, and is getting his first tooth!

Carter and Jesse have a special bond, only brother understand

I kept running, even while pregnant with a baby elephant.

Brianna came to spend some time with us!

The boys were introduced to pool.

Quality time was spent together

Jesse turned 3, and has gotten much bigger.

The boys enjoyed their first trip back to NY as a family of 5.

Jordan completed a triathlon!

Nice weather meant making memories.

Landon and Jesses friendship and bonding continues to grow

Two sisters and too many kids. Gwen was welcomed to the chaos of boys weeks after Zachary.

We got to spend time with my mom and sister!

  We completed our first tough mudder together

Christmas Letter

I figured since it was practically Christmas, that I would share my Christmas Letter with you.  Since all my side of the family lives mostly on the East coast, our Christmas letter is more of an update of our lives for the past year. Enjoy! Merry Christmas!!!

This year has been busy, filled with many blessings, too.
One big blessing is that our family recently grew.
Zachary Atticus was born on the second of May.
His siblings were ecstatic and couldn’t wait to play!
Now Zachary chats, is full of laughter, and a smile.
He sits, plays with toys and sleeps through the night (once in a while)
Jesse is now three, and loves to sing while playing his guitar.
He enjoys playing outside, being a superhero and throws his ball pretty far.
Carters’ now five, and has recently begun homeschool.
He loves legos, anything Batman and thinks dinosaurs are so cool.
Brianna has turned seven, and is now in second grade.
She adores her brothers, drawing birds, and ‘Just Dance’ is constantly played.
Since having Zach, Carly’s a stay at home mom.
She’s started a blog, joined a Moms Group, and thinks yoga is bomb.
Jordans’ been busy at work, and a promotions been given.
He got a new truck, completed his first triathlon, and is still super driven.
Together we completed a Tough Mudder, it was great.
We also purchased a home with Royce and Monica, and started to renovate.
We hope your year was full of laughter and cheer.
We wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!
Much Love,
Jordan, Carly, Brianna, Carter, Jesse, and Zachary

Your body and the holidays

The holidays can be a time of enjoying delicious treats, drinks, and time with loved ones. So often, people decide they will start (or get back to) their fitness journey after the new year. It’s great to set new years resolutions (My husband and I are doing the “Whole30” challenge come January) but that doesn’t mean that the effort beforehand should be non-existent. The average american gains 6-10 lbs from Thanksgiving to Christmas.

I used a few ‘tricks’ to going about the holidays that can help you start off your 2015 goals on the right foot.  With the average person gaining 6-10 lbs, the biggest problem is over eating. The delicious treats, and appetizers make it challenging for most of us. My first piece of advice is to get a plate. It’s easy to over eat when you keep making those trips back to pick at the food, but by getting a plate, you can see how much you’re eating.  Next, be aware of what you’re drinking. Some eggnog drinks can contain as much as 440 calories per glass! I believe that most things are fine, in moderation,  so a glass is okay…. four glasses is over 1700 calories, just in drinks. My ‘trick’ with eating desserts is simple. Like I said before, I tend to think things are okay in moderation. When heading to the dessert table, if I want something I tend to stick to a seasonal treat. If it’s something that I can get any time of the year, I usually choose to go without.

Although the holidays can be busy and stressful, it’s important to be aware of what you’re consuming. Sticking to your usual eating routines with healthier choices can help you to feel more energized when spending time making memories with your families!

Phases of Life

      Lately, I’ve been feeling slightly burnt out. From middle of the night wakings (which have been becoming less and less!), to constantly arguing boys, to the daily nap-time disputes, my days seems very long.  We are usually out and about in the mornings (library, moms group, the gym, grocery shopping) and the boys are pretty well behaved while were out. When we get back home, however, I may be looking at the clock counting down until Jordan gets home.
I know it’s just a phase of life, and it’s an important phase. It’s the time to teach my kids how to solve problems on their own, how to show each other grace and love, and how to respectfully obey their parents. It’s sometimes a pretty tough job. It’s ironic that the little people that can sometimes drive me absolutely nuts, can also make my heart fill with joy the next second. Throughout the day, I find that God uses my reaction to their defiance (and arguing, and disrespect…) to teach them. I can demonstrate showing them grace. I can also demonstrate confessing my sins, and apologizing.
Do any of you moms feel this way?  I know everyone has hard days; days they’ve yelled all day, days they didn’t get any housework done, and days that it’s dinner time and you’re realizing that you haven’t sat down to eat all day.  Remind yourself that it’s just a phase of life. Soon it will be passing by, the kids will be getting older, more independent and this current phase will be what you long for.