Daily Leah #7

It's time for another Daily Leah! I take one picture (at least) of something that makes me happy and document it for that day. Some of these you may have already seen but these are the things that made me happy this week.

February 21 - February 27

Day 52

Our new fridge!

Day 53

Smoothies are our favorite! Cheers!

Day 54

This package sure made a cold and dreary day warm and sunny!

Day 55

Reading The Choice while my nails dry.

Day 56

Softball tournament - go Lady Cats!

Day 57
 Matilda Jane package part 1!

Day 58

Surprise! Happy Birthday Mama!

Hope y'all had a fantastic weekend! :)

Friday!

Happy Friday gals! I am getting off early today and heading out to join Tate at his tournament this weekend. Go Lady Cats!


 

{ONE}

First off, why can't I sit in a pool on my pink flamingo and drink tea? Oh, that's right, I'm not Lisa Vanderpump! But, I can have a pink flamingo float of my own. Yes ma'am I can! This just might be headed my way as we speak! Do we have a pool? Nope. But I am in the works of convincing Tate we need one. Maybe this giant flamingo will set him straight. On second thought, maybe I should order Brylee one too. Then he has to say yes to a pool. ;)

{TWO}

I've mentioned that we got a new (used) fridge and it's definitely a favorite this week. It's so much better than that eyesore we did have. Just ignore our magnets and Brylee's artwork. :)

{THREE}

My new sandals from Target. I love them and I'm getting another pair this weekend. I just can't decide if I want cognac or turquoise. Who knows? Maybe I'll end up with both! :)

{FOUR}

I finally bought and ordered the Tone It Up Premium workouts. After taking all weekend (seriously) to download, I've been able to do each one. Yay me! I started with the yoga one thinking it would be easiest - it totally kicked my butt. These have become my favorite workouts.



{FIVE}

When I did my Day In the Life post I talked about drinking lemon water. I love the taste of lemon water but it also has so many great benefits. Read the full article here! And if you don't just want lemon water, check this article out for 15 different fruit infused waters. Citrus and cucumber is another one of my favorites.



 
{SIX}

Did y'all catch the lip sync battle last night? I don't watch it regularly but if a preview happens to catch my eye I'll watch it. As if I didn't already get enough Nick Carter on DWTS - Gigi Hadid had to bring him out and I loved it!




{SEVEN}

I can't go a week without talking about The Bachelor. I mean when Jojo's mom started drinking from the bottle, I lost it! And to make it even better her dad asked her to put it down! If you didn't catch that- go watch again! I'm totally team Jojo but he is way too smitten with Lauren. #jojoforbachelorette :) Sheaffer always has the best Bachelor recaps; even if you don't watch the show you're sure to laugh!

{EIGHT}

Some of my favorite posts this week:
// I had a somewhat heart to heart yesterday.
// Heather posted Things I Would Tell My 20 Year Old Self - Love this!
// Christina and Biana both shared some great travel advice!

As always, linking up with my favorite Friday gals!

Erika | Narci | Andrea

 
April | Christina | Natasha

 
Karli | Amy

 
 Amanda

 
Heather

Have a great weekend! I'll see y'all Sunday for my #dailyleah post! :)

Operation Get Fit | The Start

Good morning friends! Tate had to get up and leave super early for the tournament so I had to wake up much earlier than normal. And, because of my few extra hours this post was completed. I've had it started for a while now but never really wanted to put it out there. However, it's something I needed to do for me. I guess you can consider it a confession, but on a serious note.

~~~

  I really don't even know how to start this post. It's kind of a 'get real' post but at the same time I want to be motivational. I know we shouldn't let the number on the scale define who we are and we should be comfortable in the skin God gave us but the same time, I'm not happy with my body/health and I know I can do better. I look at clothes in the closet and think how nice it would be to wear those again - I'm talking things I know I should be able to wear, like jeans and tops I could wear in the first few months of being pregnant. Losing the baby weight is hard, but news flash, my "baby" is 3!

I have always been active - I was an athlete and I loved running so I was always fit. Even through my pregnancy Tate and I made it a routine to go walking every single night. But with my pregnancy also came preeclampsia. My blood pressure was always high and I never felt good. I was also so swollen and then just gained so much weight. I thought it'd be easy to get it off because of my active past. Wrong. After I had Brylee I had postpartum depression bad. It's something I've never really talked about, but I was put on antidepressants and just went through day to day life. Here I was with this beautiful baby girl who was very healthy considering my health during pregnancy and I was depressed. It made no sense, especially to someone who had never dealt with depression. I laughed at the fact that my social and happy self would every become depressed. Y'all, postpartum depression is real! Obvious right, but there are so many people who ignore it and they shouldn't. Talk to someone and try to avoid the antidepressants! I was almost numb.

I made up excuses for everything and just kept myself at home. I was somewhat of a homebody previously, but this was different. I didn't want to be around anybody. I even made up excuses to not do things with Tate and it put a damper on our relationship at a time when we really needed to grow and bond together. It wasn't until I had a complete break down while talking to him that I knew I needed to get it together. This was not who I was nor who I wanted to be. Things started to get better when I started back to work. I made new friends, started working out again and rekindled the friendships I had lost. I was getting happy again..

And then we moved - something I thought I was prepared for, but oh goodness no! I was excited for the move and maybe to get a fresh start somewhere but I didn't really realize how hard almost 9 hours away from home would be. It was tough! South Texas will always be marked as no doubt the toughest time in my life. I only knew a handful of people. The only friend I really made was one of the coach's wives but we only talked on occasion. I stayed at home with Brylee, which we thought would be best but I think it only made things worse. I was miserable. I tried to see the good in everything and I knew it was good experience for Tate but I was breaking. At one point I even thought about going back home to Odessa until we could figure something out - something neither of us wanted to happen.

And then Tate got a call one night almost a year ago that changed everything! I really consider it a saving grace. God never gives you more than you can handle and I'm absolutely certain He knew what He was doing. The whole moving situation wasn't the best and there were a ton of ups and downs getting here but life is back on track. I love this coaching staff, I've made great friends, and I'm working again. The only part of life that I'm not happy about is my health and body - which is totally something I can change!

Which brings me to this post (which I totally didn't mean to be taken over with postpartum depression and moving)! I decided I needed an outlet for 'Operation Get Fit'. I don't know exactly how I'm going to do these posts, but I need something to hold me accountable. I mean if I'm putting it on my blog that means I gotta stick with it, right? As of right now I'm thinking I will check in once a month with my progress, workouts, healthy recipes and motivation. I'm not dieting, so to speak, but more of a lifestyle change for the better and it's great that I have Tate on board too. I can absolutely do this!

Yes, we should love our bodies as they are, but we should also treat them right by what we put in them and do with them! I don't eat bad but I can't say my body gets everything it needs nutrition wise and oh how I'd love to have my shoes hit the pavement again!  And to anybody else struggling with postpartum depression or weight gain/loss, you're not alone! Talk to somebody - you'll be surprised at all the similar situations!




Thanks to y'all that stuck through all that. I didn't mean for it to be such a heavy heart to heart but the words were just flowing - just how I like to write! :) I'll be back tomorrow with some Friday Favorites!

Linking up with East Coast Chic and Home of Malones for Thoughts for Thursday!

What's Up Wednesday | February

Oh, hey Wednesday! I'm back with another What's Up Wednesday linkup with a few of my favorite bloggers! Check their blogs out to see what it's all about, but basically it's just a monthly check in to see what's up! :)

Shay | Sheaffer | Mel

What we're eating this week...

Monday: Steaks, mac and cheese, sweet potatoes

Tuesday: Pineapple Chicken, rice, zucchini

Wednesday: Taco pic, refried beans, guacamole

Thursday:French Dip Sandwiches, sweet potato fries

Friday & Saturday: Out Of Town

Sunday: Garlic shrimp, mashed potatoes, asparagus

What I'm reminiscing about...

This time last year we were enjoying nice warm weather in south Texas complete with my palm trees! There isn't much I miss about south Texas but the constant warm weather and palm trees I definitely do!  

What I'm loving...

Being blonde again! I mean, I never went super dark this year but I've had an ombre for quite a while. It's nice to see the blonde again! 

What we've been up to...

Lots of softball and things related!

 

 What I'm dreading...

Starting back to school. I know it'll be so worth it when I'm done but I've been out for so long! I've gotta find my groove again. 

What I'm working on...

Still finishing up the living room. Little by little we are getting things done!

What I'm excited about...

On Saturday I ordered these sandals and they came in yesterday! Target is killing it with their new spring things! While I cannot really get to enjoy them right now, they still make me super happy!

What I'm watching/reading...

Watching: The Bachelor - I really haven't been watching much tv lately.

Reading: The Choice - if I can get started! I've read a couple pages but just haven't had the time to sit and really read!

What I'm listening to...

Good old Texas Country. Josh Abbott Band, Cody Johnson, Aaron Watson - ya know, those guys!

What I'm wearing...

Currently my pjs. :) But lately this tunic has been on repeat! I have two colors, two more on the way and the shirt like it! To say I love them would be an understatement.

What I'm doing this weekend...

Softball tournament in Stephenville. Go Lady Cats!

What I'm looking forward to next month...

Lots to look forward to in March! St. Paddy's Day, Easter, my nephews birthday, and March madness!


 

What else is new...

I've started planning a few little trips for us this summer. We were going to do Disney but decided to hold off on that until I finish school. We aren't real sure where we'll go yet but will probably just stay in Texas and thanks to us being almost right in the middle of Texas, anywhere we go will be at least a 6 hour drive. I can dream of Disney and somewhere tropical right?


 

What's my favorite Easter tradition...

Of course getting fancy for Easter Sunday (each year we alternate between Tate's family church and mine since we never went to the same), dying eggs with the family and our infamous Egg toss! It's a huge deal! You and your partner get a raw (yes raw!) egg and toss it taking a step back after each catch. You play until all eggs have been broken. Some break in hands, some break on the ground, some break and splatter all over the catcher, and then some oddly just don't break! That one usually just ends up on someones head. My family has done this for as long as I remember and it's always such a competition. Sadly Tate and I have never won. Maybe this will be our year! Ha!

So there's February's check in and my first with Chasing Texas!