Picturepalooza

Sorry guys but I have this awful habit of never downloading my pictures and when I do I want to share them all.  So here they are.

I love when they match

a gift from his great Aunt Debbie.  He woke up and immediately asked to play with his trains

 It was time for a hair cut.  Micah's hair in the back was really long, especially if he was wearing a shirt with a collar.  The worst was when he would get food in his hair it would stick out perpendicular from his head.  He is a messy eater so this happened often.  I wasn't there for Caleb's first haircut so I was determined to photograph this one.  I wanted Caleb's hair to stay long and Chris surprised me by cutting it while I was at a doctors appointment.

see the hair over the ear

This was the best I could get of the back.

He did great the whole time.  Daddy is an expert.

all fresh faced after his hair cut

Caleb's hair was getting long also

Caleb's turn

Every time I go to take a picture of both of them they start sucking their thumb.  Micah can't decide which hand he favors, typically it is the left.

Micah got a new toy, he even got some coffee filters from the pantry and put them in his cart

Last night Chris was installing the new car seat for Caleb and moving his old one around for Micah to use.  It was time we just weren't in much of a hurry. I was in the kitchen cleaning up after dinner so Caleb played with daddy, or so I thought.  Caleb had other ideas for what to do with his evening.

He did this over and over again, he was so proud

  Today Caleb and I went to urgent care.  This morning he was climbing down from the counter in the bathroom (he does this all the time, clearly he is a climber) and he slipped and bit his tongue.  The cut is a bit alarming to look at but the doc said he does not need stitches.  He was so brave and told every person at the urgent care that he hurt his tongue.  He would then tell them the story of how he got it.  The doctor recommended bland foods and lots of cold stuff like popsicles.  Caleb got so excited about a popsicle the doctor offered him one.  And in true Caleb style he asked for a green popsicle.  He can't just ask for something but has to be as specific as possible.  Lately when he wakes up from nap this is how our conversation goes:
C:  are you down there mommy?
M:  why yes I am, did you sleep well
C:  yes, get me lots of milk in the fire engine cup and lots of colored goldfish.  I want lots of green goldfish.... please


He cracks me up.   The pictures aren't that bad, it is worse in person because you can see how deep it is.

Such a big boy eating a banana all by him self

Whole 30

We have completed one week of Whole 30.  I am so proud of us.  What is Whole 30 you ask?

 "Whole9’s original program designed to change your life in 30 days. Think of it as a short-term nutritional reset, designed to help you restore a healthy metabolism, heal your digestive tract, calm systemic inflammation and put an end to unhealthy cravings, habits, and relationships with food."  ~ from their website

This is a challenge not a diet, but I'm hoping that at the end we will want to make some changes to our diet.  After you finish you can add back in foods and see how your body reacts to them.  To read some more specifics about it click on the image above, you can think of it as a really strict Paleo diet.

Why am I doing it?  I realized I'm an emotional eater.  I crave ice cream and cake and after eating some I instantly want more.  I'm never satisfied.  I will buy a candy bar while checking out of the grocery store to say congratulations to myself for making it through the store with 2 little ones.  Did you notice I can justify almost any indulgence.  But when it occurs multiple times a week it isn't really an indulgence anymore.  I want to break this cycle.  Also I have never viewed food as a source of energy but instead as a source of pleasure. So this month for me is about thinking about what do I need to feed my body to give me energy for the day.   And Chris is doing it with me to be a supportive hubby.

Of course the boys are not participating in the Whole 30.  Most of their diet is grains and dairy (both of which are no no's for us) so I still have these items in the house.  I have surprised myself that this isn't an issue.

Biggest change has been drinking either black coffee or coffee with coconut milk.  I tried to just not drink any but after a day and a half of horrendous headaches I decided to get used to the new normal.  This morning I still had my ahhh moment.  You know that moment when you get your first sip of coffee and everything is perfect you actually have an audible ahhh.  I will not brew my coffee until I can ensure that moment will happen, some days in the chaos of mornings that means I don't have any until 10am (my boys are early risers and usually get up at 6:30)

I love to cook which is super helpful for doing the Whole 30, sense all food needs to be prepared by me (it is the only way to ensure that I am following the guidelines).  This week I have spent about 2/3 of nap time cooking, but I have loved it.  I am experimenting with new foods and making a lot more stuff from scratch.  Some of the stuff I am most proud of have been salsa, mango relish, marinara sauce, grain free oatmeal , cauliflower mash and cauliflower rice.  Next week should be a little bit easier because I can repeat some of the good dishes and I won't have to look at a recipe.  I am hoping to get some spaghetti squash, kale and bacon (surprising how hard it is to find some with no added sugar or preservatives) for next week.

Notice that I didn't tell you guys about this until after I started.  I was a bit worried I would chicken out and didn't want the shame of failing to be so public.  But now I am committed to seeing this thing through.