Just a quick {update}

Things are good.
I feel good.

Really though, this morning has felt... like... like I can breathe! Of course the simple fact of it being a Wednesday and not Tuesday or Thursday helps quite a bit.
I can breathe.

Read that again, just one more time; okay make it two.
The second time read those three words slowly, and as if you yourself feel like you can finally breathe once everyone in the dog-pile gets off of you and you finally have your breath after running as hard and as fast as you could for five minutes.

Do you understand now?

The feeling is so relieving, and exciting.
and terrifying. 

'What? Girl, why you sayin' it's terrifying??' (that's you asking me)
Because that means that at any moment the creeping fog will come in full force. Maybe slowly, maybe fast, maybe lightly or maybe so thick you can't see through it. That is why I try not to think about those moments where everything feels great, I can breathe and the mornings are smooth.

I have, however, been attempting to pay more attention to what I'm feeling these past few days so that I can provide a decent analysis for those of you reading. Over the past few days I've been feeling better, lighter if you will.

  (The weather is beautiful today, which also helped to keep my mood up. It's tremendously important to get out for even a few moments; especially when the sun is shining and the wind is beautiful.)

I've been taking vitamins regularly, incorporating supposed depression-fighting foods into my diet, as well as making it a point to ride my bicycle again. This morning there was even enough time to wake up to do a quick routine of morning yoga. (which I'll be doing again this evening as I've noticed my hips are getting a little tight.)

(We all know one of my strong points is confidence and over exaggerated vanity. Which is a bi-product of hiding my depression for so long...  Yet with that being said, it's important to find beauty in yourself. It's important to be silly and goofy.)

Unfortunately as hard as I try to keep some sort of routine going in my life it doesn't seem to fully stick. It's there, it's just not... exceedingly consistent. I'm currently seeing a handsome young man whom I find a little bit of comfort in his routine; it's actually a huge help for me. It's comforting and relaxing to know that I can rely on the knowledge of when I will hear from him. Yes it sounds silly, but it's true. I'm making a large conscious effort to build and maintain a set-ish schedule and routine. Apparently routines are a big help in our battle.
Thus far I know that keeping 2-3calenders is a big help for me staying on track. In each of them (well I try to keep them all synced) my attempts are to have most of my day scheduled, of course with room for movement.
For example I have:

• Morning yoga
• Shower
• Wake-up/Start getting LittleMiss ready
• Leave
• Study Time
• Class.....

and so forth... Keep in mind each day is different, this is a simple rubric I attempt to keep.

This all leads to....

Rule Four:
Establish some sort of a routine for yourself. Read my above routine again if that gives you so help. Keep it simple and short to start with. Maybe wake up every morning at a set time, follow it with morning reading/yoga/coffee/tea/walk what have you. Maybe take lunch at a within a set time frame everyday (such as between 1130 and 130, giving you wiggle room should something come up to hinder your leaving time). Maybe, just maybe your routine needs to be reading or journaling for thirty minutes everyday. 
Don't worry if at first it doesn't stick. This is all trial and error, do not, do not  stress about setting up and find your routine. Starting small is always easiest, always best. By starting small we are able to find what really works for us, what truly fits the best. 

;

Little Rock, oh, Little Rock {pt1}

I had a great weekend in Little Rock.

It was better than I expected, even though I wasn't sure what to expect. As it always does with TheBeardedWonder, time flew by. The drive to was fun (he fell asleep, so I jammed out. DriverSeat dancing... Singing Solos...), the sights were great even though we only saw a small portion. 

While Little Rock has very dangerous areas, and is very hood, everyone was truly nice, as well as friendly.

Vegan Deliciousness!!

There is a fantastic food truck (now also has a bakery) called Kind Kitchen. I loved them the first time I had their Indian Taco. Fantastic. They support local farmers, make vegan AND gluten free items.

The coffee shop I work for recently incorporated them into our pastry selection, a brilliant idea. 

I had to do some prep work and walked in to these beauties:

Vegan- Gluten Free Red Velvet Cupcakes. 

I shouldn't have to say more, but I will go on...

 

I want this for all major events in my life.
Valentines Day.
Birthdays.
Anniversaries.
Just because.
"Oh we got into a fight, here's a 'sorry I made you mad cupcake'"

...LittleMiss's birthday too...

It's not at all dry, like you might expect of a gluten free pastry. And the 'cream-cheese' frosting isn't like the traditional cream-cheese frosting (that I honestly am not much of a fan of...). Which completely makes sense because it's vegan 'cream-cheese' frosting. I honestly haven't had many tries of regular Red Velvet cakes, but this one is just...fantastic.

If you are ever in Arkansas you have to try them.



{{ Follow me on Instagram: @mamasquirrelchatters
Follow Kind Kitchen too!: @KindKitchen }}

Free Tuesdays: Homemade Peanut Butter

I made this a few weeks ago and it was delicious!!! Better than any store bought peanut butter I have ever had. It was airy, slightly crunchy but still so smooth.

Broccoli Quesadilla??

I would like to think that this will be toddler approved. Because I love it. And if I love it, SweetPea is going to have to eat it. Right? ;)

About a two weeks ago, I bought some broccoli to make Broccoli Cheddar Bites (don't worry at some point I will make this and give you the recipe!!). Needless to say I have not made the bites. I would like to blame it on the fact that my shredder is still lost in transition from moving. Either way I needed to use it, wanted to use it and am kinda craving it.

Pooping.

I really did try to think of another way to title this post. Going the direct route seemed to be the best! Plus I'm sure it will catch your attention. ;)  This is a post for pregnancy and after birth. (another bit of research I've done)

Most pregnant ladies have this problem. I won't lie I've had a day or two where I can't say I've gone. Being constipated can be very uncomfortable and unhealthy. A great way of fighting constipation is to stay hydrated. As well as eat a healthy diet with lots of fiber!

Food Safety During Pregnancy

This is very important!!

Now that you're expecting everything you eat effects that little one growing inside you. Remember in my post about gestational diabetes? Keep in mind that you need tons of fruits and vegetables to stay in top shape. But when it comes to meat, if your a die hard carnivore, you have to be very careful!

Gestational Diabetes

I apparently have it.

It makes me angry. I eat very healthy (most of the time). I'm pretty sure it's because I had a banana strawberry smoothie the night before (literally only a banana and four strawberries) that caused my reading to be a bit off.

Smoothie or Perfectly Melted Icecream?

Breakfast began calling my name this morning. My cabinets are a bit under stocked, a grocery trip is being planned. I need to make my two to four week menu plan and write out the grocery list that is going to be needed.

Anyways! Sorry I ramble so much, one of my pregnancy side effects.

I decided on a shake. My blender had a perfectly different thought.

Thanksgiving Photos!!

look at that smile!!

PaPa and Lil J!(my nephew)

add about five or six more people to the equation and you have us all!

Poor baby did not leave my side. I'm not sure WHAT the kids fed him but he was so very sick today! Poor baby! At first I was pretty frustrated, but I was more worried to be honest.

Me being tortured! Two kids were braiding my hair and the one in purple wanted me to braid her hair. Do you know how hard it is to braid someones hair while you have TWO kids braiding yours??? it ain't easy. ;)

(photo graph by lil girl in purple)

(photo graph by lil girl in purple)

my awesome work!

I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving. I know first hand that the holidays are difficult and stressful. Family members don't always get together, food gets burned, things are spilt...so on and so on. But at the end of it, it usually ends well. We leave with memories, some bad, most good. We also get a whole new year  to be thankful for new and old things.

Peacock wasn't able to make it to my family feast, which while it sucks, I still had fun. I know his family feast wasn't the best, but I know he still had a few fun moments. Plus I know his little boy had fun.

If you follow me on twitter you'll have seen a few pictures and a few posts on lost of food!! Ugh I was sooo stuffed and so thankful for my lactaid pills. I popped around four yesterday!! and they helped!!


Well I am going to get back to working on Christmas Presents!! Sweet Dreams Y'all!!!

Rainy Friday

Guess

WHAT???


It's my day off. I have literally done nothing. And I still feel accomplished.

I just watched Alpha and Omega, not all that impressed to be honest.

But I was impressed by this:

I will say, I am probably going to have to grow my children up on goats milk. While it is tasty(and in my opinion healthier), it is different from cows milk. It has a certain bite to it. One that takes a bit to grow accustomed to. But I really do love it. 

It's kinda like greek yogurt with the fruit on the bottom.

Oliver is even a fan. :)

I've also decided I will probably work out. 

Gluten Filled Cookies

Totally listening to Alex Clare TOO CLOSE, some how it fits. Total secret that no one knows, this song reminds me of SAA and I. Not entirely sure why, all I know is we aren't as compatible as either of us would like.

(the song came on on random for spotify, just to let ya know )

Well I found out one of the members of the gym is on the swat team for my area, and he is really nice. He was telling me about his dogs and all. After seeing End of Watch I realized how little people do to show their thanks for our local heroes; cops, fire fighters, medics, doctors ect. So I offered to make him some cookies. Since I have never made a gluten free cookie (yet I just went for it and did my classic chocolate chip (gluten filled) cookie. These things used to sell like crazy in high school. The officer requested blue m&ms so I bought a bag and picked out the blue ones, and set aside the red ones to make for the fire fighters.

I really hope they turned out well, I haven't made them in a few years! But I definitely miss baking, and can not wait to fine tune my skills in the gluten free world!!

On a completely random note, I just realized a lot of my relationship problems one: stem from my parents and two: from my lack of self worth.... I'm gonna need to work on that. :)

Hope you guys have a great Thursday!! (it's my FRIDAY!!!)

New Diet

So fun story!

Not only am I sensitive to gluten (it makes my joints hurt), but I am also lactose intolerant. So no more ICE CREAM. No more CREAM BASED ICINGS. Pizza I can have, ricotta I can have, and I'm pretty sure yogurt won't hurt me, but I'd rather not chance it to be honest.

And because it is SO HARD for me to find any good recipes or snacks this blog is going to have a lot of food stuffs going on!! I hope you're as excited as I am. :) !!

Lets start with snacks! Oh and Red Lobster.
I had lunch with a friend yesterday at Red Lobster, ordered the shrimp jambalaya, was very disappointed. It was way to oily, had a dairy based sauce which wasn't listed in the details(yes I should have asked,but I've never heard of a jambalaya like that). So I do not recommend it.

I forgot to grab some snacks and a lunch from my house before work, so I stopped by a very awesome gas station with a sweet grocery market. I grabbed some yummy foods: a few larabar's, almond yogurt, and almond thins.

This one not so great. It's the cookie dough flavor. It has a little bit of milk because of the chocolate chips.

this one is delicious. Chocolate is not quite the best for dairy free but for gluten free its amazing.

 This was my lunch yesterday. Oh my gosh. The banana bread flavor is yummy. The almond yogurt is delicious. The consistency is a little different but not far from dairy yogurt.

Well I've got to head over to spin class and then the grocery store! Hopefully I can at least talk mom into coming out with me. :)

Suri

So I'm sitting on my patio listening as SAA's iPhone 4s tells him the words he messes up on a text. It's almost entertaining. What's even better thy that is how my whole day/night went.

We'll start with the AM:
Woke up, made breakfast looked for a car and it was fucking hot. Very hot and humid.
Found a great car! Well I fell in love. Still has to go through one more persons approval before I say okay done. It's a beautiful blue four door VW station wagon. Love it. 2002.
Had some yummy raspberry chai frappe style tea. Along with some VERY coated in chocolate covered coffee beans.
Went to work. Had a great day at work. Everyone was in a great mood. Loved it.
Left work. Went home changed. Went to BWW hung out with some nerds. LOVE my terrific nerd friends.
Invited a person I was kinda interested out to our local watering whole. Had a blast at BWW.
Left to go to the pub, said person of interest showed up.


I literally ran from him. SAA can attest to that. Not lying.

Way way to clingy and affectionate. I think by now y'all know I do not to a lot of affection. Especially with some one I have barely known for a week.

Well then I drive a slightly Intoxicated SAA to his house as he is my ride to work in the beautiful AM. It was fun. He had a crazy cute weird rat. And pretty nice house.

We drive to McDonald's and I was called out for talkin shit in the drive threw. It was funny I had never been embarrassed IN a drive through before. Then I almost fell asleep waiting for the food.

We get home. Sit on the patio eat our food and all of a sudden this car pulls up.
Im like who is that? That car doesn't live here.

Low and behold it was said person of interest.

He
Drove
To
My apartment
At
Three Am!!!! Wtf??

Not a happy camper.

Buuuut.

I'm getting sleepy. So please excuse the typos because I am sure there are many. So I'll finish the rest if my crazy July sixth night at some point on July seventh.




Sweet dreams.