ABC love game :]

This is a fun game to play when you get that time to yourselves while the kids are napping or whenever. 

Have each other go through the Alphabet and name off things that remind you of your significant other that begins with each letter.

example

It's funny all the things you can come up with especially for the letters that hard to come up with things... all of us girls can all agree when we get to the other X we think X-box. 

Next time you get a change, Play this game. It's a fun way to connect with each other :] 

Do you have a Diastasis Recti/Abdominal Split ?

So After some searching I have recently found out I have an abdominal split after having two very large babies! 

I am blogging about this because some women don't even realize they have it and without proper exercise these muscles will never "go back." So all these normal crunches and ab exercises I have been doing have actually been making this split worse!!! 

This is a very helpful video to see whether or not you have it-

Do I have Diastasis Recti/Ab Split? 
Another way to test yourself!

So I will give you a little summery of how to test to see if you have it.

1. Lie on the floor knees bent with your pelvic floor lifted, then "crunch" your head up half way.
2. Take three fingers and place them down the center line from your belly button up.
3. Run your fingers up and down that line and don't be afraid to sort of push down.
4. If you can fit all three finger within that "line" at any point, you my friend as well as I have an abdominal split. :[ Boo! 

So I didn't really explain that into full detail so if you want to test yourself, I really recommend watching the video above. 

A good note is that this "split" can be easily closed through proper exercise. Which Youtube as a lot of those.
                Mom's into Fitness YouTube Channel!

After lots of google"ling" I have notice this is a common thing that can occur in both men and women. Both Men and Women through rapid weight gain. Women generally from pregnancy or through the pushing of labor. 

Spring Nails

Now that it's spring, do you have a fun manicure to get you in the spirit? A quick way to get a cute Spring look is Sally Hansen's Salon Affects. 

If you haven't tried it already I really recommend trying them :]

Here is an image of her Spring Collection. Super cute right?

and here are all of the other beautiful options there is.

With Sally Hansen's Nail Effects there is no need to wait for drying and are simple to use! If you are in a time runt or for the effects you can't master yourself, snag one of the many options up and apply!! They last up about two-weeks and the price around 9 dollars! :] 

Can a Mom still look "sexy" in a bathing suit without revealing her "trouble" areas?

Summer Season is approaching and for us Mom's who still have our "Problem" areas how do we go about wearing a bathing suit to hide our "Flaws" that still provides us with a bit of sexiness still?

For me a lot of my insecurities are in my stomach area... No more tiny bikinis for me! :[ Two other common area's Mom's may feel uncomfortable with are their thighs and buttocks. 

I have done a lot of store browsing, bathing suit trying and web serving research to provide a list of bathing suits to make you feel confident in. 

Something I have found however is that, some of these bathing suits can be a bit pricey... But when it comes to feeling good in what your wearing the price can be well.... "priceless."

Green Smoothie Remix- Guilt Free Ice Cream!!

Since I have taken un-healthy foods out of my diet I swear I have been craving ice cream even more! I have a good remix to the green protein smoothie that will satisfy your sweet tooth and still give you the added benefits of the smoothie just no milk! 


click this link for the smoothie recipe:
Yummy Green Protein Smoothie!

Ok, so in case you wish not to click on that link I will provide you with all you need here :]


1-Frozen Banana (Please do yourself a favor and peel it before you freeze it!)
About four cups Spinach 
Heaping spoonful  of peanut butter 
You usually add milk to the smoothie but for the ice-cream I added water (I guess it's optional though) Add just enough to make the ingredients mix together.. You don't want to "over water" it because it won't turn out smoothie like.
The teeniest I mean tiniest little itty bitty pinch of salt (Really just a SMALL amount)


Throw all the ingredients into a food processor  (or blender) and mix it until it's an "ice cream like condensity" If your having trouble with that try adding a couple ice cubes in to thicken it up. 

and here are your results. Guilt free Ice-Cream made from Banana and spinach! :]

All Natural Vanilla Creamer

Have you ever tried Coffee-Mate's Natural Bliss Vanilla? It still adds cream to your coffee with a not so over powering taste like the other coffee creamers. Depending on your taste buds this may or may not be a good thing. I like both the taste of the natural bliss creamer and the, normal Coffee-Mate or the International Delight coffee creamer. 

This taste like I said is not as strong but, still gives your coffee the needed the flavor :]

So I've got a recipe to make your own creamer. This could be for the day's you run out of creamer or just an alternative to buying those expensive creamers.

 

Carson's Invitation to his Birthday Party

So after a full day of photo-shopping I came up with the perfect invitation to Carson's Birthday party.

He is turning two in late April but it's never to early to start planning ahead.

Egg Carton Snake

Crafts seem to be taking over our mornings. Once my coffee is brewed and our breakfast is devoured, we venture off into the living room and make new things.

Today we decided to make a snake, we previously made a toilet paper roll snake and that seemed to be a big hit so we wanted to bring together a newer version of   our "slithery" friend. 

This time we will be making one out of...... an egg carton.

Surprise for "The Worlds Greatest Husband and Daddy"

Something I like to do to keep our relationship alive is to randomly surprise my Husband with things to let him know I love him. Like a random love note in a work pocket, a drawing folded up in his wallet, a sticky note attached the inside of the windshield. This was the recent surprise I set up while he was sleeping. 


I am pretty sure this will probably embarrass him... So why did I do it any way?? Strangely my answer is out of love. Even if he get's embarrassed I am getting such a sweet point across to let every one know how much me and the boys appreciate him! 

Helpful hint----> I didn't have window paint/marker handy so I created my own out by mixing finger paint with a couple drizzles of dish soap.

Cotton Ball Bunny

Can you believe it's almost time for Easter already?? The saying "once you have kids life flies by" is true I guess! I feel like Santa just came a couple weeks ago.

Any way a fun craft Carson and I just recently shared together was, a cotton ball bunny! We also added Easter themed foam stickers to it... I used the stickers to help Carson learn some of his colors.  

When we have "craft time" my boys enjoy listening to Toddler Tunes on the cable box.. if you have Comcast it's channel 928. That station plays songs ranging from Barney to cute Kid songs like The wheels on the Bus.

New Throw Pillow Covers.

I am in love with whole mix match throw pillow idea but on a budget I didn't want to spend a lot of money throw pillows when, I already some from my previous bedroom outfit. 


Something I have been doing a lot lately is paying more attention to the clearance racks..... Especially at Target!! Not that my Target shopping weren't long enough already. Something I scooped up a pretty king size pillow sham. Originally 29.99??? Sorry but a 30 dollar sham? Any ways it was on sale for like 12 something and an additional something else off and ended up being like 7 dollars :] For the length of fabric I am getting, that is a steal of price!! 

There goes my beauty :]

My story about going through Postpartum Depression

I hesitated on posting a blog about such a touchy subject but after awhile of thinking about it I thought it would be helpful for other Mom's to know that is more common than what we all think. 


A month after having my littlest guy Cayden, I knew there was something wrong with the way I was feeling. There is moderate-severe cases of postpartum depression and mine fell under a moderate category. 


I am a 21 (22 this May) year old with two kids. Carson going on 2 in April and Cayden will be 5 months on the 1st of April. My Husband is in the Military and we live clear cross country from family! I think the fact of not having that much family support (as far as not having family here helping out) mixed with the feelings of hating my post-baby body played a big roll with my depression. 


I was nervous about seeking help or even mentioning it because I didn't want people to assume that I "hated my kids." Because I love both my boys with all my heart and I would never "hate" them but, this was something I just thought people would think when I mentioned I thought I could have postpartum depression. 


After some convincing from my Mom I made the decision to schedule an appointment with my doctor. At my appointment  I had found out that postpartum depression is more common then I thought it was and I felt comforted knowing I wasn't the only Mom going through this. 

Vintage Shabby Shelf

I had my mind set to go to Michaels all day yesterday, even planned out my shopping event by searching online for any deals or specials going on. I came across a 40 % off one purchase and a "bonus coupon." I darted to my closest to get out my printer.. and printed those coupons out with no hesitation lol.

After a hour spent browsing, one cranky Toddler and an impatient Husband I knew my "quiet time" was up and I headed to the cash register with all my new items. :] 

Here is all that I got

all minus the jar, shelf and tea light votive's. I purchased all these things for the great value of 24 dollars! gotta love them coupons. O yes plus Mod Podge and Crackle Medium.

Sassy Water

I came across this recipe on the Live Strong website. The benefits are great and it also tastes nice and refreshing. 

This drink is made up of cucumber, lemon, ginger and spearmint leaves. The purpose of this drink is it's suppose to "make you feel full on few calories" Total this drink is about 50 calories. 

The ginger in the "sassy water" helps soothe your stomach. Ginger can also help  with nausea, diarrhea (While pregnant with Cayden Ginger-ale was my go to drink for morning sickness!!) 

Both the Lemon and Cucumber provide a good source of dietary fiber. From the website "Dietary fiber comes from the part of plant foods that your body cannot digest, and eating a high-fiber diet may help you control your weight." They also provide you with potassium (helps proper function of heart, kidney muscles) The Lemon also contains a high amount of Vitamin C (which helps repair and growth of tissues in the body.) 

And the spearmint is considered a herb for weight loss. 


This drink isn't a "miracle weight loss solution" So don't jump the band wagon for just that! :] But remember the benefits of drinking this mixture are great!


A miracle weight loss solution consists of hard work and dedication. Exercise, and Smart meal choices!!

Franks Red Hot Chicken Fingers :]

After stumbling around the kitchen trying to decide what to whip up for dinner with the Chicken Breasts I set out, I attempted a risky move!! Something I haven't done before and always wanted to do...... Make homemade chicken fingers. 

So I whipped up a recipe using our favorite condiment, Fanks Red Hot. Lol my family does just what the labels says "We put that s*#$ on everything" :]

Leprechaun Trap.

To continue on to our St.Patrick's Day Tradition we decided to make our own Leprechaun trap to try and catch the little critter. Carson had a blast helping me out with it and we are hoping to see some Leprechaun action throughout the house!!

St.Patrick's Day Cupcakes

To get into the St.Patrick's day Spirit I thought it would be fun to make a themed cupcake :] 

"There is no such thing as a miracle...

that picture of the back is me four month post second baby :]  I know it's not model perfect but it's so far perfect to me! 

                                 
Found this quote loved it and had to share with the results of my post baby body (so far). Working out is something very hard to squeeze in with two little guys but I find no excuses, if I want my body back I will make it happen!

I am not at the weight or "figure" I want to be but I am telling you my self image towards myself is starting to become a lot better! Miracles can happen so when you say it's impossible remember... Nothing is Impossible when you put your mind to it!!  

Spa Day at Home (Birthday Present for my Mom)

So my Mom's Birthday is on St.Patrick's Day, how cool right? Well, as a present for her I originally wanted to get her a gift card but I wanted to get her something more personal, so what's better than a spa day?? I thought it would be fun to provide her the right essentials for a Spa Day at home! 

Here is the "Spa Day Kit"

Protein Smoothie!

Since I am on the road to a healthier lifestyle I recently started to replace my lunches with this smoothie. don't let the looks fool you, this protein packed smoothie holds a lot benefits. 

• Antioxidants (strengths your immune system)
• Vitamin C (Helps produce collagen which in returns makes bones gums and joints healthy plus many other benefits) 
• Good amount of daily fiber (regulates bowel.. ew I know)
• high in Protein (keeps you fuller longer also helps you feel energized)
• Potassium enriched (helps the heart, muscles, kidney properly function)

The list can go on and on lol! 

Sugar Lip Scrub

Having dry lips isn't fun. What causes dry lips?

• You could be using a lip balm/lipstick with drying agents... what to look for. An ingredient used in the product to give scent/flavor called.. Cinnamates. 
• Biting or licking your lips. 
• Not drinking enough water. Which causes your skin/lips to stay hydrated. 
• Your tooth paste. Believe or not if you get chronic dry lips this may be the culprit! 
• Sun/Wind damage.

Be sure to apply a good lip moisturizer. After searching the web here are some of the best I came across.

Burt's Bees Original Lip Balm

The  Body Shop Shea Lip Care 

Kiss My Face Organic Lip

Carmex Mint  Lip Balm

Hot Wheels Play mat

With all the Diapers we go through we managed to save up quite a bit of boxes throughout the time. They're suppose to be for our moving adventure but using one for fun purposes won't harm any! 

Any ways we just cut all four of the corners straight down to lay the box flat. Then color away!! 

Carson choosing a "Color" in other words Crayon 

Coloring some details onto the mat

Whats a perfect play mat without a Target??


Carson really enjoys adding his own little scribbles in! This is always a fun project to bring out on a rainy day or just whenever :]

Don't Forget to Exfoliate!

To exfoliate means to remove the dead or dry layer of skin that can accumulate over time. If your not doing this regularly your skin won't be able to absorb your moisturizers to it's full potential.  

There are so many ways to exfoliate the skin. You can do so with a loofah, wet sand rubbed onto the body, scrubs and chemical methods or peels. (obviously the peels or chemical methods is something you probably don't want to do on a daily basis!)  

non-exfoliated skin can make your skin look dehydrated and dry. This is due to clogged pores.

The Benefits to exfoliating are:

• It reduces the appearance of lines and or wrinkles
• Helps keep your skin healthy which in return prevents breakouts
• It makes your skin look more vivid by improving it's texture
• It sheds the dead skin off the body
• Helps hold your tan
• It helps bounce back skin after weight loss or pregnancy

Remember not to go over board on exfoliating so you don't harm the tender parts of your skin. This can hurt because sometimes I can get a bit carried away and this will happen to me!

So don't forget to add exfoliating in to your shower routine and I promise you, you'll start noticing tremendous results on your skins appearance! :]

Cheap Alternative to Eye Makeup Remover

With all the expenses my children bring this Mommy doesn't want to spend that much money on eye makeup remover. So I took what I already had laying around and gave it another use..... eye makeup remover.

This is amazing because it helps hydrate your skin without drying it out like soup and water may cause to the eyelid. You could also use scented lotions but I am nervous the perfume in it will cause your skin to dry out (since the skin on your eyelid is more sensitive than the skin on your body.) Plus cocoa butter has so many vitamins and stuff in it! 

So the top picture I have all my eye makeup on, and the bottom one is after I took the cotton ball dipped in the Cocoa butter and rubbed it over my eyelid :] 

Works just as well and will last you longer! 

DIY Nail Polish Holder!

Items I used were-     

• A black floating shelf (I had this laying around and wanted to make new use out of it) 
• Cheetah print Duct Tape square. (found it on sale at Target for like 99cents!)
• Scotch Velcro strips 
• Saw tooth hangers 

So first I took the Saw tooth hanger and nailed it into the back of the shelf

 

then take the Duct Tape and carefully apply it to the shelf. Be sure to smooth it as you lay it out to prevent a bubble to form underneath. 

After applying cut off the excess Duct Tape  

Repeat the same process on the next one. I left a gap in between mine to add a black and cheetah stripe in the middle. 

Once your done with the shelf take the Velcro strip and stick one side on the nail-polish, and the "backing" on the shelf. I cut my Velcro strips in half to get more uses out of them. 

Almost finished...

Now either have it set up on your vanity or hang it up on your wall! :]

(I gave the adhesive on the back the of the velco strips time to secure before hanging up the shelf)

Get OFF the scale!!

For those of you who are constantly finding yourself getting on the scale every waken minute you have available (like I am guilty of doing) This is such an inspiring and beautiful quote! 

I came across this quote by Steve Maraboli while google searching inspiration quotes about weight loss. Since this picture is sort of hard to read I will recite the quote below. 

“Get Off The Scale! 

You are beautiful. Your beauty, just like your capacity for life, happiness, and success, is immeasurable. Day after day, countless people across the globe get on a scale in search of validation of beauty and social acceptance. 

Get off the scale! I have yet to see a scale that can tell you how enchanting your eyes are. I have yet to see a scale that can show you how wonderful your hair looks when the sun shines its glorious rays on it. I have yet to see a scale that can thank you for your compassion, sense of humor, and contagious smile. Get off the scale because I have yet to see one that can admire you for your perseverance when challenged in life. 

It’s true, the scale can only give you a numerical reflection of your relationship with gravity. That’s it. It cannot measure beauty, talent, purpose, life force, possibility, strength, or love. Don’t give the scale more power than it has earned. Take note of the number, then get off the scale and live your life. You are beautiful!” 

― Steve Maraboli 

This quote is so beautiful I wish I could permanently keep it on my scale! Which I am sure there is ways and when I find out one I am totally going to do it. 

So for those of you obsessing over your weight or find yourself frequently jumping on that scale to see if you have shed some pounds. Remember the number that shows isn't nothing compared to beauty both inside and out!

Happy Friday, I hope you all have a beautiful family filled weekend!  

DIY Brother Wall Art!

So recently I came across this wonderful quote by Marc Brown that stated "Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero"  I instantly fell in love and wanted to incorporate this into the boy's room in some sort of way!

So I decided to print it out and frame it! 

1. I started with a plain black picture frame from the dollar store. 
2. Then I got out my white paint (I had left over from a previous project) and a paint brush. The paint is just a sample size jar I picked up at Lowes in a white latex color. 

Then I started painting. If you like the "vintage" look don't worry about get too fancy with the paint job! 

don't forget to paint the sides both inside and out!

While the paint was still wet I took birthday streamer (you could even use a paper towel or coffee filter I just had the streamer closer at hand!) and brushed it across the paint to give it a streaky look providing the original color of the frame to peek through.

While waiting for the paint to try I hoped onto Microsoft Works, Word Processor and typed the quote in the size,style and color of font I thought would look best in my boys room! (The font size I choose according to frame size) Before you print make sure you do a print preview to make sure the quote is evenly placed on the "paper." 

I printed out two. One to stain and the other to use a "model" for the frame decorating as the other one was drying. 

I then took a baking sheet and placed the paper inside. After that I poured coffee onto the paper enough to cover it completely. In the picture to right that is what the finished look, looks like before dried. 

While the paper was drying I took the baking of the picture frame and measured a ribbon to  right length I wanted and cut the access. After that hot glue the ribbon in place. 

I took an extra ribbon and just tied a bow in the center of the larger one. 

For added touches to the frame I lined ribbon in areas I wanted to place it hot glued them  on and then cut the extra ribbon away. 

After the paper dried I placed the backing of the frame on top of it and traced around it. Then I cut the extra paper away.

And here is the final look :]

 

A book to share

I am sure at some point in our lives, we all came across this particular book.. 

A beautiful story about a mothers love for her son. After numerous times of reading this book, I swear it still brings tears to my eyes. This is a book I love to constantly read to the boys and from time to time I will rock them on our reclining chair and sing to them the song the Mother sings her son in the book....

I'll love you forever,

I'll like you for always,

As long as I'm living

my baby you'll be.

I think no matter how old my boys get I will look at them as my little babies! 

Reading to my boys is a priority I try to squeeze into our routine each day! It brings a child's imagination to life. A world full pirates, dinosaurs and for those of you who have daughters pretty princesses. 

Reading to your child holds so many benefits. Some of them include. 

• Creating a stronger bond between you and your kids.
•  It helps your younger children learn shapes, colors, numbers and letters.
• It teaches your children about different life situations.

Something I like to do while reading to my boys is be "obnoxious" really getting into the book and exaggerating some of the voices and sounds really brings the characters to life. When the character is sad I pretend I am sad, if their happy or mad well... I pretend I happy or mad too. This teaches your children about emotions.  

Another thing I would like to share that I do is point out different things on each page. Go more into the book than just the words. Pointing out an animal and making the noise the animal makes, or even simply pointing out an object in the picture really gets Carson's attention. Sometimes I will catch him with an opened book pointing to the objects in a picture saying "look a bird, truck" whatever it is he sees he likes to point them all out lol! 

This is my boy's book collection, I just wanted to point out the wear and tear of the books from all the reading we do (plus having a toddler doesn't help the shelf life of a book lol!)

I would like to ask one simple favor, if you haven't done so already... read to your child(ren) today!