Let the good times roll

In seven days my little family will be taking a mini-vacation. SEVEN days. I better make it.

This will be our first out of town, road trip experience as on our own, and I started planning it out of blue one day. I had this desperate desire for a break. We all just need to get our of this house that isn't our settled nest and have some fun together, so we're going to New Orleans. I haven't been in years (the year before Katrina was my last visit) so it's going to be like reuniting with a long lost love!

I've spent the past couple of months trying to dig myself out of this pit I got us in, yet again. Dreading being in the kitchen, eating out way too much, letting the laundry pile up for days, arguing, yelling, laying around all day doing absolutely nothing, and just not functioning well as a family.

I overwhelmed myself reading up on lifestyle choices and trying to take ours 'to the next level.' We've spent the last four years informing ourselves and slowly changing things in our diet and lifestyle. I felt like we kept reverting back to certain things and wanted to step up our game after enduring another rough spell of eating out and inactivity. I've done it before, and I did it again....I nearly sent myself into  because of grains. Grains? I know. In 4.5 years I can cut out alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, soda, candy, junk food, fast food, most refined foods, buy organic produce and dairy (excluding our slip ups of course) and it's not enough. When I learn about something new I have this "all or nothing" attitude. It completely sabotages our efforts and we end up having to start all over. (BTW, the grain issue is extremely important and for some people their health depends on immediate action, but we're not in that situation and I was being way too hard on myself instead of taking day by day baby steps

Twenty plus years of a Standard American Diet (topped off with addiction recovery) does not take a few weeks to undo. In the beginning I thought that's all it would take. Two moves, almost two babies, and plenty of other various high stress situations later.....I realize a few years is just the beginning.

I have to constantly remind myself: I'm a 22 year old wife and mother, simultaneously feeding and growing two little humans with my own body! My husband has his joy and zeal completely wiped out of him everyday and still manages to come home with some sort of smirk or kind gesture. Our daughter is healthy, happy and learning. We're doing alright. We're doing alright.


I just wanted to share this because sometimes  it might seem like I have it all together. I talk about breastfeeding, avoiding GMO's, growing my own food, buying organic produce, and cooking meals at home. I'm sure can be intimidating and I do my best to humbly inspire. I just don't want to leave anyone feeling like crap about themselves, and thinking I'm some sort of Domestic Goddess. Blogs and Facebook are great tools for connecting and sharing, but we usually share the positive things about ourselves. I think it's really easy to start idolizing or become envious of someone based off of just little snippets of their lives. I go back and forth all the time on whether or not to keep this little weblog going because of that. For now it stays. There really isn't a more efficient way to keep far away friends and family updated.

We're works in progress. I know, it gets old hearing that, but it's the simple truth.

So whatever transformational journey you're on - remember to stop in New Orleans, grab a muffaletta (if you're not pregnant oysters on the half shell and a bloody mary! *sigh* maybe next time) and laissez les bons temps rouler!!!