Dear Cecilia, Happy 1st Birthday!

Dear Cecilia,

My sweet, sweet girl. Your entry into this world was shadowed by the fact that we had just moved across the country and were adjusting to life in Japan but you still came into the world with a BIG bang. The doctor smiled and said to me, “Looks like you have a red head!” It gave me the last UMPH I needed during those 3 hours of pushing. A red head, how lucky we are!! You are also what they call a Christmas Baby and while we are already seeing some of the side effects of that, I think I will never tire of knowing that December will be filled with so much love because of you! Our few days in the hospital were some of my most favorite early memories. Your daddy decided to sleep at home with your bother so it was just you and me during those first few late nights. You would snuggle and nurse and you were just so content. 

You latched like a pro and despite the normal wear and tear, our nursing relationship has always been so easy and so natural. Words can not really describe what it is like to nourish and provide for such a small and vulnurable human being. I knew you would be the last baby that I would nurse and the last baby that I would have all of those late night moments with. I tried not to think about it too much but I sit here today and am so grateful for that time we have shared. I have kept you full, I have kept you healthy and I have given you exactly what your little body needed to survive this world. But, you also did so much for me without even knowing it. You gave my confidence in what my body can do, you taught me to practice the art of just taking it all in and you also embraced my sometime very sweaty and very rushed nursing sessions while training for my big run. You did it all with a big smile. And while I am ready to stop nursing at any point, know that I am so happy we had that time together and know that I am truly amazed at what both my body and your body did to make this first year so fulfilling.





The love you have for your daddy makes me so happy. You are truly a daddy’s girl. Even with a 5 month intermission in there, you still prefer him to anyone. The joy this brings me is quite amazing. I love how you light up when he comes home from work or when you spot him walking across the room. I love that you snuggle up to him when you need some alone time and I especially love how you giggle at all of his silly ways. Your miniature under bite while you concentrate is inherited from your main man and we can't help but to laugh every time we see it. Never stop being a daddy’s girl, they are the best kind.

Your brother’s love for you is BIG. Transitioning from one to two was easy for our family because of your big brother. He couldn’t wait to meet you and to help us grab diapers for you. He also loved to give you big kisses, sometimes too big but was always so willing to be gentle with you after we reminded him that you were just a tiny baby. During your daddy’s deployment your brother was SO helpful. I look back on those five months and I know we survived because of him. Because of his love for you and me. Now, you love following him around, albeit much slower than him, you are always right behind him. I know you will have a special relationship growing up and that makes me so happy. The age gap was a bit scary for me, but I think that won’t stop you two from being close throughout life.

We are coming up on a fun time in your early years. You will start to see and experience something new daily. You are about to start to express yourself even more and maybe even start talking. A part of me is sad because we had such a good year, like seriously the best year ever. When I say you were a dream baby, you really were, for so many different reasons. But, I am excited to see you grow and see you experience all the new happenings around you. I am also excited to add to your passport, now that you have some more traveling under your belt. The world has not seen enough of Cecilia!

You are the most perfect addition to our family. You are the last addition to our family and I feel so content and happy saying that. You completed our little club and I can not thank you enough for that. Never stop seeing the joy in the world. 

I love you my sweet Cecilia!
Happy 1st Birthday!

Love, 
Your Mom 

Favorite Food - Chicken and any type of beans.
New Skill - Walking!
Favorite Activity - Taking all of the cards out of mom’s phone holder or her wallet!
Sleeping - Eh ok, but on vacation it has been rough. Early riser for sure.
How Many Teeth - 8 (all within the last 3 months)
Favorite Book - God Gave Us You - MarbleSpark personalized book
Words - Mama and Dada and a specific noise when she points to brother.

The Golden Bow Shop

Growing up I was somewhat of a tomboy, sure I had my pink stage and my shiny red shoes that my mom used as leverage on more than one occasion, but for the most part I enjoyed comfort over frills and bows. Fast forward quite a few years later to us welcoming Cecilia and discovering that it really is fun to dress miniature females, bows and all. The endless rows of girl clothes can overwhelming compared to the tiny boy's section next-door, not to mention the plethora of accessories that are offered for the girls, but so far she is rather loving her new closet.

Living in Okinawa, you would be surprised at how many places do not ship to our post office. Even though it is on base and the cost of shipping is the same as stateside, just add on that pesky customs form of course. So when I found The Golden Bow Shop and realized she was local, I could not have been more excited. Hannah makes the cutest bows and her prices are so affordable. Shipping costs can really determine whether or not I shop local, so I was thrilled to find out that Hannah offers no tracking option that is under $1.00 or an option to add a tracking number for just a small bit more. So affordable! She can always take custom orders, too. I have already sent in my request for a special homecoming we have soon, can't wait to show you all! 

Cecilia does OK leaving bows on her head, but I am also super concerned with her being comfortable. Insert the nylon headband bow. These stretch so nicely and seem to be much more comfortable on Ceci's head. I also have gotten a lot of people saying they love the look because of how skinny the nylon actually is. Is your little girl ready to start wearing pigtails? Have no fear, she offers pigtail bows too in the same patterns. 

Hannah just released her Fall collection and to celebrate we are doing a giveaway (giveaway is now closed)! Head over to my Instagram to enter for your chance to win your very own set of bows for your little! Follow the instructions on the pictures and make sure to follow Hannah at The Golden Bow Shop over on Facebook to get all the latest news about shop specials and new releases. Giveaway is NOW CLOSED! 

On a side note this is not a blog where the babe is somehow perfectly posed and calm for pictures. How do they do it? Seriously, Cecilia is on the move 24/7 these days.

 

While I may need some time to warm up to the bell bottoms and the bows the size of Texas, I am having fun being a little girly and dressing Cecilia in all of her cute new bows. Bring on the bows, frills, and occasionally white tee, because honestly babes look so cute in those simple shirts! 

Honolulu Marathon Training Month 1 Recap

Hello! Oh, how I have missed you all! Thank you so much for those of you who are still pinning, clicking and commenting on my older blog posts. It means the world to me that you are all hanging around during this whole "hiatus" season. Since moving to Okinawa and welcoming our second child, I have been trying to decide where to take the blog and what sort of content I want to bring to all of you. I have some exciting things in the works and hope to be up and running in the next month or two, with lots of  new posts. Until then be on the look out for a few giveaways and special posts here and there. Also make sure to catch me on Military Moms Blog and over on OkinawaHai!

Being pregnant and recovering from Cecilia's birth really drove home how much I love running. I was not able to run throughout my pregnancy, but I did keep up with physical activity and other workouts. The entire time I really, like really, missed running. Right after having Cecilia the Okinawa Marathon took place and the start line was literally right out our front door. We took the kids out and cheered on all of the runners and the entire time I was sitting there, wanting to join in. I missed the feeling of training for a race, I missed the butterflies that happen while in the start line and I really missed the satisfaction I got when I completed a run. That day, I registered for the Honolulu Marathon.

Now, let me back up here. I have only ever done one half marathon and it was a trail half. An extremely hard trail half, you can fund my race recap here, and after that I took a much needed break from running races. Then I got pregnant. So, it had been well over a year since I was doing serious mileage or training for any sort of race. But, the thought of completing a marathon within a year of having Cecilia was something that I knew I wanted to do and something I knew would be difficult, but so rewarding. Now you may be thinking why Honolulu? Well, there is no time limit to the Honolulu Marathon which makes it a popular race for first time marathoners. Most races here on the island and mainland Japan are timed and strictly timed at that. Also, Honolulu is relatively easy for us to get to from the island since there are constantly flights to and from. Ryan and I discussed this runcation and knowing that he would be ready for dose of America we decided to make it a family vacation. Knowing my Uncle loves running and was actually the one who helped fuel my love for running, I invited him. He responded by saying he would think about it. A few weeks later, he was officially in. I can not not tell you how excited I am to be doing a race with him.

The dreaded Trail Half Marathon that was maybe the hardest thing I have ever done.

Me, next to my Uncle (and our team) after completing my second Dances with Dirt. 

So, I set off on finding the right training plan. With Ryan being gone for the first half of my training, I knew I wanted to give myself some extra weeks and was leaning towards a 26 week plan. I was starting with very little mileage, so I needed a lot of time to build up. The best laid plans always go awry, am I right? I started the 26 week plan while back in Ohio visiting family, and a week in my kids and I got seriously sick. Like, sick for over two weeks, sick. There was not much running happening during that time unfortunately. So, I moved on to a 22 week plan. So far, so good. I did take a week off due to us flying back to Okinawa. I knew with the flying and adjusting to the time difference my long run would be nearly impossible to complete that week.

So, here we are, one month into my training plan and things are going well. Let me start by saying the weather right now is less than ideal when it comes to running. We wake up to hot and humid and we go to bed to hot humid. There is not much relief. I try to get out early for my stroller runs and the stroller has not one but TWO fans for Cecilia. When Lucas bikes with us, we stop for water breaks a lot and usually have more than one rest stops in the shade. I have been utilizing a babysitter for my long runs. These typically start around 9AM due to Cecilia's schedule. She is still exclusively nursing and not wanting to take a bottle or a sippy cup, so even though she can go a few hours in between nursing sessions, I try to work with her nap schedule as much possible. Starting a 8 mile run at 9AM when the temperature is already near 90 degrees is hard, but I am making it work. Lots of fluids and just taking it easy is my game plan. I have also decided to utilize the run/walk method for this marathon. More on that in a later blog post, but basically I wanted to give the method a try and thought my first marathon was a good starting point.

Training for a marathon with a jogging stroller and sometimes a 4 year old on a bike is hard. Don't get me wrong, there are days where there is bribery in the form of an ice cream cone to get the run in, but we are doing it. Not only am I checking these runs off the bucket list, but I am being active with my kids and that is so important. Sure, sometimes I shave off a mile or two if I feel it is too hot, but I am feeling stronger and more solid with each long run. I wanted to breakdown my miles so you can see how I am running them.

Total August Miles - 58.14

Stroller Miles - 32.45

Bike and Stroller Miles - 14.6

Isn't that amazing? Lucas rode almost 15 miles this month. I let him know this impressive stat and he laughed and said, "Well, ya we love running and riding my bike!" I hope to update you all through this journey, including recapping TWO half marathons I doing, one of which will be my first local race.  Okinawa is an amazing place to run. There are always so many people out and about, and the views are absolutely breathtaking.

Need some motivation to run while you are parenting solo? Need some motivation to train for your next race? Let me know! I love chatting strategies with people. 

6 Simple Steps to Getting Back into the Kitchen After Baby

Cooking is so important to me. Not only do I like to feed my family meals that I have prepared, but I also truly enjoy following a good recipe or creating my own one of a kind dish. Getting back in the kitchen was important to me after we welcomed our second baby, Cecilia. Not only because I love cooking but I am also living in a new country, filled with endless new ideas to add to my recipe book. If I'm being honest, it took me about a month until I really had the energy to spend grocery shopping and cooking a solid meal,  but once I got back into the swing of things it felt so good to be chopping and cooking again. Here are some of my foolproof hacks to make getting back into the kitchen an easy transition.

1. Don't set your expectations too high.

I aim for three good home cooked meals each week. The days where Ryan has to work 12 hour shifts, or we have two doctor appointments during the day, I go ahead and dip into my freezer stash. The last thing I want is to be stressed out and in a horrible mood when I sit down to eat the dinner that I planned, prepped and cooked. 

2. Set yourself up for success.

In the old days when there was just one kid involved, I was really good at getting everything prepped right after I went to the grocery store. But, now that I have a little one that nurses, she always wants to eat as soon as we get home from the store. So I have had to kind of change my routine of prepping. I try to prep all of my vegetables and ingredients before I actually get in the kitchen to cook dinner. If I have a down moment during the day while my oldest is at preschool, I go ahead and cut the vegetables. If the baby is napping and I have already had my power nap, I prep. One of those days where the baby takes a 4 hour nap? Prep all of your meals for the week, trust me you will thank yourself later. It is so much simpler to cook if you have everything prepped and ready. 

3. Distract, distract, distract! 

Luckily, our island in the kitchen is big enough for Luke to sit and color or paint while I cook. He is really good at doing an activity if I sit with him for a few minutes and walk him through what to do and then get dinner ready. Aren't bouncers a gift from God? As long as CC is fed, changed and happy, she will sit in that for a few minutes while I get everything ready. I occasionally wear her, but I am still learning to love that process! 

4. Use a grocery delivery service. 

For those of you that are in the states, the curbside grocery is really taking off. Take advantage of it! I hate grocery shopping, but love cooking. I would rather use my energy to cook in the kitchen than to push a stroller around and try to keep a baby happy while we are shopping. I love the service, The Set Table, they are available out here in Okinawa as well as Leavenworth Kansas, so check them out if you are local. They give you everything pre-measured, all you have to do is read the recipe and prepare the vegetables. It has saved me SO much time you would not believe it. I try to order one or two meals from them a week, which is one or two meals less that I have to worry about. Not in those two areas? Try another meal delivery service.

5. Keep your recipe expectations low! 

As much as I love cooking Rachael Ray dishes, those are just not doable at this point in our routine. Maybe in a few years I'll have the time and the patience to go to three different stores finding all of the ingredients, but for now I love the 3 to 5 ingredient recipes. I also stick to the dinners that I am very familiar with. You know the ones that your husband got sick of a few weeks into your marriage? Those are perfect for right now! 

6. As always, double up those recipes. 

You all know by now that I love having a freezer stash! If I am able to cook one night then why not go ahead and double that recipe so I can freeze the dinner and use it at a later date? It just makes so much sense and has made my life so much easier! I made my Lasagna recipe a few weeks ago (which yields FOUR lasagnas), so yesterday when I was sick all day, I threw in the extra one that I had frozen and dinner was done.  Most recipes can either be cooked and frozen or prepped and frozen.

Happy Cooking,

Our Favorite Personalized Big Brother Book

Welcoming Cecilia into the family has gone exceptionally well. Cue the eye rolls, now. But, seriously it has been a joy with very little growing pains. Sure, she is a bit fussier than Lucas was at her age and yes, as always, nursing took a few weeks to get the hang of. But, Lucas has been a champ through the process and he is such a good big brother. I think some of the reason that it is going well, is because he was so prepared for this huge event. 

While searching for big brother gifts, I came across the personalized books made by MarbleSpark. Lucas is currently learning how to write his name and he is obsessed with finding "L" all over and loves when he sees his name on paperwork and letters. So, naturally,  I had a feeling that he would love reading a book starring himself. MarbleSpark had just launched a Superhero book, Every Superhero Needs a Sidekick, and I knew it was PERFECT for Lucas. 

Personalization is super simple and quick, just a few minutes really. And the best part? You can customize the character to look like your little one. After you personalize, you can see how the book will look through  preview feature. When it arrived at the post office, Lucas could not have been more excited to open his package. He couldn't believe it actually said his name. And, yes, he did notice that the Lucas in the book looked eerily similar to himself. Since he has received it we have read it no less than 100 times and every time he has a HUGE smile on his face.

MarbleSpark is currently running a giveaway to celebrate the launch of Every Superhero Needs a Sidekick, so make sure to enter for your chance to win here (giveaway has ended).. While you are there make sure to visit their blog to read about the inspiration for this wonderful book. 

I am also super excited to offer my readers 15% of ALL books on MarbleSpark. Personalize your very own book and use code Q5SUK2DP at checkout (offer good until 2/10/2017). They even have a cute Christmas book that you can personalize. We are currently waiting on Cecilia's book to arrive, God Whispered Your Name. 

MarbleSpark is a wonderful little company that not only makes great books, but also has superb customer service. This book will be with us for years to come and it will always help us to remember this special time. Thank you, MarbleSpark! 

Happy Reading, 

This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are completely my own. 

My LAST Bump Update, Hopefully!

I am 39 weeks and 2 days pregnant today. Officially, the longest I have ever been pregnant. With Luke I had a relatively easy time since I delivered him at 39 weeks and 1 day. No crazy lead up contractions, a few signs that labor may be close, but mainly I waltzed into the hospital 7cm dilated to nurses that assured me the pain was coming. And came it did. 

Call me crazy but I am completely enjoying these last few weeks of pregnancy. Sure, I am super uncomfortable 98% of the time and sure I am popping Zantac like there is no tomorrow, but I am soaking up these past few weeks. We are doing activities one on one with Luke, like decorating our ginger bread city together and playing as much hockey as we possibly can. I know those moments will change slightly when we welcome another child, so for now I am just enjoying being present.

I am not one of those woman who love being pregnant, actually I am quite the opposite. But, as my mom told me the other day, "it's easier with her in than out, enjoy your last few weeks." She could not be more right. The first few months of having an infant is a beautiful and loving time, but it is also filled with little to no sleep and a body that is trying to put itself back together again while nourishing another human being. I will be tired, I will be irritable and there will be times that I don't want to take the five minutes it takes to sit and read to Luke. So for now, I am taking that time and I am writing little snippets to myself to remind me how important it will be to sit down with Luke after the baby comes. I am telling him to always come in and ask me to read to him, even if it seems like mommy is tired.

Another reason that I am enjoying these last few weeks is because I will not experience this again. We are done. Period. No more pregnancies and no more babies. We are so content with two and there has never been a question about whether or not we wanted more than two. We are currently drawing straws to see which one of us is going to get "fixed", and I am secretly hoping he gets the shorter straw! Some people don't know if they are done and some know for sure they want more, but for us we know that two is enough and will be a happy family of four.

In all fairness of course there are mornings that I wake up and groan as I roll out of bed to start another day with pelvic pain, an absurd inability to lay on my back and lack of wine, but then I have a moment of deep breathing and some motivational self talk and I am back on the happy train. Maybe tonight's the night, or maybe Monday morning is the time, but until then give me all the kicks and all the little uninterrupted moments with Luke because I am sure I will miss them soon.  

Who are you supporting?

All the recent posts, blog and major media outlets alike, about mom shamers and hateful comments on social media have got me thinking about something. Maybe if we stopped writing open letters to the hateful people, stopped trying to figure them out, and stopped giving them their five minutes of fame after they make horrible remarks, maybe just maybe people would stop doing it. 

Have you ever met that person at a party that would say and do anything in order to get in an argument or a discussion about a topic that nobody wants to talk about? Those are the exact same people that are doing this on social media, they have resorted to their couch because nobody wants to hang out with them and nobody wants to argue with them in person anymore. Now they are simply trolls that are looking for a good time on the Internet. Too harsh? OK, maybe it's a mom that's had a really bad day and that has a really strong feeling on something. Maybe she regretted it after typing it. Or maybe she didn't. But who cares! It also happens to be easier to say hateful things through a keyboard than a mouth. 

Ignore them. Stop giving them what they want. Stop writing a comment back to them. And dammit, stop writing blog posts about it. There will always be hateful people in this world no matter what we do or what we say. The better thing to do is step on your high horse and let the people who are being shamed know that we have their back, and no matter what we know that they are good people. Write a comment that lifts them up and ignore the haters. Write a blog posts that praises their decisions. Send them an email letting them know that you are on their side.

Kiss your kids on the lips, don't feed them organic food, use regular suntan lotion, embrace your kid's awkward toddler tummy and if you are feeling really daring, post about it all over social media! Because guess what? They are your kids and it is your life and at the end of the day we know you are an awesome parent. 

Remember, support each other and practice what your momma taught you, "If you don't have anything nice to say than say nothing at all!"

 I am leaving you with one of my favorite "empowerment" lyrics.  

Recognizing and Overcoming PPD - My Experience

My friend Rosi contacted me a few weeks back asking if I was looking for any guest bloggers. She has a wonderful blog, that is on hiatus right now, and was wanting to write about some events that are close to her heart currently. The best thing about blogging is that writing can sometimes be therapy and a bit of release of emotions, it can also bring awareness to something that doesn't get spoken about often. Enjoy Rosi's post, I know I did, and thank you to Rosi for bringing awareness and sharing her journey.

First, let me say a big thank you to Meredith for inviting me to guest post for her. Meredith is doing such an amazing job with her blog, I very much enjoy reading it and watching it grow. I always knew she would be great at this! Second, let me introduce myself. My name is Rosi. I used to blog as PerfectlyFITT but am currently on a hiatus due to life getting crazy and not being able to make the time it deserves right now, however you can still find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. I am a wife, mother of two, a SAHMish, and a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist working as a personal trainer in Detroit. 

There were so many topics I thought of writing about and share with you all but one overwhelming kept popping up. Since having my second child (he is now just over three months old) I find myself battling postpartum depression and I want to share my journey with that with you.

Shame. Embarrassment. Disgust. Those are just a few of the feelings I have/had about being post-partum depressed. I absolutely know that I do not have to feel that way but that’s just part of the whole post-partum depression thing. Feeling ways that you don’t have to but can’t help. It took me a while before I finally realized and vocalized to myself that this was in fact something I was going through. In the hospital I had a to take a questionnaire about what has been going on in my life to see if postpartum depression was something that I would be susceptible to, turns out I’ve been through quite a few triggers. To give you an idea over the past year here are some of the things I have been dealing with…a move across the country, stressful job searching, my grandmother passed away, starting a new job, pregnancy (which is never easy for me), living in a less than desirable house, giving birth, my dad passed away, moving again (locally but still)…needless to say I’ve had a lot of my plate and that has done me no favors in this process. Oh, and the fact that I get very little sleep with a newborn does me no favors either.

Initially when I didn’t know what was “wrong” with me I found myself constantly searching about postpartum depression. I would read the symptoms and think “but I don’t have feelings of wanting to hurt my children, I don’t want to NOT be with my baby”. In the end though what I finally came to realize was that I didn’t have to be experiencing every sign and symptom to be dealing with postpartum depression. 

In my darkest times I experienced an overwhelming amount of self-hate. I actually verbalized OUT LOUD how disgusting I thought I was. I would literally stand in front of a mirror and say horrible things to myself out loud. About my body, my parenting, any way I could put myself down really. I had very little, to no, patience with my daughter and would irrationally punish her for just being a toddler. I cried over just about anything. I often had thoughts of leaving my family completely. I exercised because it’s what I’ve always done, it’s what I thought would make me feel better but I hated every second of it. I made sure I always told people I was doing great and super happy when inside all I wanted to do was be by myself and cry. It was miserable. It still is some days but I am dealing with it in a much better and healthier ways.

Being a mom is tough and when you are dealing with PPD it’s even tougher. There is so much pressure to be this “perfect mom”, to handle everything that comes your way with ease, but that’s just not how it goes. The best thing I have done for myself is to accept and admit that I am dealing with PPD. Some days I do really well but some days I really struggle. Especially with the passing of my dad I feel like that has taken my PPD to places I hadn’t been before but I don’t stay there and that’s what I care about. I talk about it to anyone who will listen and I have found, by talking about it, that many more women have dealt/are dealing with this than you may realize. I have reached out to my family to let them know what’s going on and I have told them some things they can do to help me. Because that’s just it, most people are so unaware of PPD and what they can do to help and even what they may be doing to trigger episodes for you and not even realize. For example, I was told to “just keep smiling”, but you see that’s just it, sometimes just keeping a smile on my face is really hard and when people say that it can cause me to put pressure and stress on myself which can make the PPD a real struggle. So I took that opportunity to explain just how hard “keeping a smile” can be for me now. Part of my healing has been to help those around me understand PPD just a little bit more.

For me just having someone around sometimes is the best help I can get. I get lonely just me and the two kiddos some days, like I don’t have purpose, like what I do doesn’t matter but I know that’s not true. That’s just the PPD talking.

Just before my dad passed away I traveled out to Arizona to see him, for the time I was there and for just after a week after I didn’t work out at all. Two weeks went by of me not exercising. For me that’s a pretty big deal, I am big on exercise, but you know what??? It was so helpful in my healing process. My body got some of the physical rest is so badly needed. Having resumed my working out again I am finally loving it like I did before and that feels really good. It brings me true genuine joy in my day and I like that feeling.

Each day I feel like I get just a little closer to my normal self but I also know I’m not there yet and each day I make a conscious effort to talk to God, engage in positive self talk, take time for myself, and to vocalize my feelings. It’s definitely a process and one I am no longer ashamed, embarrassed, or disgusted by. It is me, and I love me, no matter what I may be going through.

Postpartum depression is very real and something many women go through. It’s also a topic that is just now, I feel, starting to get the attention it deserves, something just starting to be talked about. If you feel as though you are experiencing PPD the best advice I can give is to talk about it. If you know someone you think may be PPD, please be gentle in your approach. If it is something they have not yet recognized you could do more harm then good in your approach. I am always available and open to chat too. My email is perfectlyfitt@hotmail.com.

It was a pleasure to talk to you all too and to be a Semibalanced Mama for a day! ;)

It's my Blogiversary and I have a HUGE announcement....

Semibalancedmama is officially one year old! 

I started this blog, thinking it would reach a few friends and family members. I needed an outlet. I was a SAHM that had a voice and I wanted to share it. I love being a SAHM, which surprised me a little, but I also am a person who needs to feel connected to something. This blog has been my outlet and my passion and I am so excited to hopefully take it to new, fun and exciting milestones. 

About a month ago, I did a 100th post giveaway and a thank you note to all of my readers. 100 posts was a HUGE milestone for me. That is a lot of writing and a lot of work in a short amount of time. Doing a giveaway just seemed natural, I wanted to celebrate and I love giveaways. But, making it one year is also a huge milestone. I racked my brain with ideas on how to celebrate this milestone. And than it hit me, morning sickness, tiredness and overall mom brain and all..... a HUGE announcement.....

My shirt is from SweetEmersonsCloset, make sure to check them out! 

We are pregnant!!!

I am 13 weeks along, which puts my due date at December 7 of this year. Some of you have suspected, because why else would I not celebrate National Wine Day?! With Luke, I was almost 9 weeks pregnant by the time we found out, so the first trimester flew past, with no sickness and no signs of pregnancy. With this little one, I found out almost immediately, and it has been the exact opposite of my first pregnancy. But, we are so blessed to have a new bundle on the way and Luke is pretty excited too.

I am so excited to document this pregnancy through the blog. Of course, you will still get your #freezerlovefriday and other posts, but I plan on focusing a lot on "real talk" pregnancy throughout the nine months. 

Thank you so much for being a part of my life and for sharing semibalancedmama with me! I love each and every one of you!

Happy blogiversary to me,