Monday, April 12, 2010

85. Take Avie to Animal Kingdom at Disney World.

March 11 - 13, 2010
Knowing that Matt was going to be on Spring Break soon from FSU I wanted to do something fun for all of us and get away. We are so blessed to have such a hard working daddy so I knew this would be the perfect time to cross this off my 101 list and to give Matt's brain a break from his daily grind. Words cannot express how much fun we had as a family on this trip. Memories were made to last a lifetime!

Checking into the Lodge and looking over our Welcome Package. Our room overlooked one of the Safari's and we were able to see all sorts of animals from our balcony. Avie's favorite was seeing the zebra's and giraffe's while eating our breakfast out there.



On Kilimanjaro Safari Ride - Our favorite part of Animal Kingdom.

The moment we arrived at Animal Kingdom and Avie saw the face painting, she kept asking to get a "tiger face". So on our last day, she got her wish. She kept "roaring" at people - it was such a hoot! It was the best $8 we ever spent!

Avie really enjoyed bird watching - who knew!


One of my favorite pictures! Not even 10 minutes on the road and she is knocked out! If you're wondering about the blue winter hat - well it's her favorite hat that she insists stay in the truck and she wears it when we are on the road. Hey whatever makes the girl happy. :)

15. Plan weekly craft projects with Avie for 6 months. Make it a habit to continue on after the 6 months by putting it on the calendar. (16/24)


Craft Project #16 - Make Easter decorations that Pop and Grandma Nancy sent.

15. Plan weekly craft projects with Avie for 6 months. Make it a habit to continue on after the 6 months by putting it on the calendar. (15/24)

Craft Project #15 - Paint flower magnets with GG (Avie's great-grandma)

I bought this craft when Walden Books was going out of business at our mall. It was a great snag for under $3. GG was getting ready to go back to Michigan so I thought this would be something special the two of them could do together.

19. Read one parent/self-help book a month for a year. (12/12)


#12 - MARCH - Making Children MIND without Losing YOURS by Dr. Kevin Leman

The author who is a father of five, equips the reader with seven principles of Reality Discipline that show you how to:

- get kids to do what you want them to do
- foil finicky eaters, turn off temper tantrums, and minimize sibling rivalries
- use authority and decisiveness to show your kids you're not a pushover
- know when to take the little buzzards by the beak (HA!)
- set suitable allowances, curfews, and privileges
- put yourself back in the driver's seat

He uses a lot of humor that I could relate too and am just thankful that Avie is an angel and I really am reading this book, knowing my luck, for our next child. ;)

Can't believe it's been a year since I started reading one parent/self-help book every month. Time has flown by and time to cross another 101 task off my list! How exciting!

19. Read one parent/self-help book a month for a year. (11/12)


#11 - FEBRUARY - What the Bible Teaches About . . . Guidance by Peter Bloomfield

Peter Bloomfield dispels the notion that there is just one perfect plan for our lives, and urgest us to follow the Scriptures which provide all we need to live lives that are pleasing to our heavenly Father. (exert from back of book)

19. Read one parent/self-help book a month for a year. (10/12)


















#10 - JANUARY 2010 - Shepherding a Child's Heart
by Tedd Tripp

This book was recommended by a friend of mine from my old church in Michigan who is a wonderful parent and whose opinion I respect. This is a sound biblically-based guide on how to raise your children and how to speak to the heart of your child.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

44. Do a food detox for one month.

Completing this task off my 101 list has been life changing! A girlfriend of mine from high school has an amazing boot camp for moms called MAD MAMAS BOOTCAMP in San Diego through her business Max-Out Fitness. Unfortunately I don't live in SD to do the 5:30 AM boot camp drills with all the other Mad Mamas but thankfully, for the Internet, I could partake in the online nutrition group with them. My BF Mae did the detox with me for moral support so I wouldn't be alone. Now that's real friendship! :)

I decided to do this detox after getting results back from my yearly physical. My triglyceride levels were elevated A LOT! Normal levels are below 150 mg/dl - mine were 457 mg/dl!! This is a hereditary issue so I knew that if I didn't tackle this problem now, I would probably die from a heart attack or heart disease in the future. So talking with my BF, she told me about a raw detox she did last year through our friend and told me to try it and see if it worked. The detox consisted of all "raw" foods - when I mean "raw", I mean food in its natural form and it can be cooked. I took out all allergen type foods like wheat, peanuts, milk, cheese, and eggs to name a few. We cut out all processed foods, all sugar, soda, pork, and red meats. I was very intimated at first but the program had TONS of recipes for breakfast, lunch and dinner so it was really nice to have someone "holding your hand" through out the whole process. At the end of the day, we all posted our food journals in our online group chat room. That part was really nice because it held me accountable throughout the day and also let me see what the other moms were eating. Here is an example of a typical day during my detox:

Breakfast - Berry Smoothie (w/ plain Soy milk)
Snack - an orange and a 1/2 cup of raw cashews
Lunch - White Bean Salad or my favorite was leftovers from dinner when I made Spaghetti Squash with a homemade sauce with ground turkey breast.
Snack - apple with 1 TBSP almond butter to dip slices in
Dinner - Tilapia fillet, brown rice or my new favorite Quinoa, and fresh asparagus. For dessert a banana with 1 TBSP almond butter
**LOTS of water through out the day was drilled into our heads!

Mad Mamas taught me that 80% of what I want to look like on the inside and out is strictly diet with 10% genes and 10% exercise. After the 3 week detox, I went to have my blood drawn and the results were astounding!! My triglycerides went from 457 mg/dl to 233 mg/dl!! Now that the detox is over I am going to begin exercising, I know I can get my level down to the normal range. I did not exercise for the 3 weeks because I wanted to see my raw results of the detox with no outside factors. I succeeded and also lost 6 lbs in the process and inches all over my body! I am 1/2 a pant size away from where I was before I had my daughter!

After the detox ended, I slowly brought back in wheat, sugar, and dairy to see how my body would react to them. I found out that I have a slight allergy to wheat and sugar - made me bloated! So now I know to eat those foods rarely or in severe moderation. I cannot thank Mad Mamas enough! My family loved all the recipes and what was awesome about everything was how much flavor everything had and the beautiful part was that everything was in its natural form - the way God had intended. I am excited to continue on this raw diet with a few "sprinkles" of life tossed in here and there. ;) It has been amazing!!