I decided to try to cut back on my fat intake. Seems that going to the gym 3 times a week, religiously, isn’t enough. I’ve tried high protein diets that made my blood sugar funky and I’d walk around like a zombie. I’ve tried cutting carbs but got bored. I’ve tried eating smaller portions and snacking less, and found myself grumpy and short with everyone. So, I decided to try the Special K/Oatmeal “diet”. I basically just customized the Special K diet to make it healthier and more bearable. So, in the morning I eat a small bowl of Special K with an orange or apple. I don’t usually eat breakfast, so this is plenty of food. At lunch I eat 1 cup of oatmeal with Splenda and cinnamon. I have some more fruit for a snack with the kids after their nap. Then, for dinner, I’ve been making healthier meals that are heavy on the veggies and light on the meats. On Friday I made a veggie lasagna for me and a regular lasgana for the rest of the family. I make the bread but I don’t eat any. And I top that off with a big salad with light dressing. It’s easier to do this than I thought and I don’t feel deprived. I’ve been at this for about a week and a half and have lost 5 pounds. I think the hardest part is making the lifestyle change, and not just making this a temporary thing. And eating out is difficult because I normally order the fattiest, greasiest, most breaded and fried thing on the menu. I’m southern, what can I say? It’ll be a hard habit to break.

Bye-bye bacon, biscuits with apple butter, and pancakes. Hello oatmeal with Splenda. Here’s to hoping that lumpy oatmeal helps remove the lumpy butt I’ve acquired over these childbearing years…

You can stop and smell the flowers, if you want. I do. But  in addition to that, I definitely recommend that you stop and take pictures with your fam in one of those silly photo booths. That, my friends, is a blast! Can you imagine all 5 of us cramming into this little booth? Such fun!

Check this out, y’all: We have a rule in our house for Austin. No soda with dinner until you have a glass of water first. Last night we were gathering around the dinner table and Austin asked for a pop. I asked him if he had his glass of water yet and he replied that he hadn’t. I told him, “Well, we’ll each ask you a question and if you answer right, you can have a pop without having the water first.” Jeremy went first– “What’s Bella’s middle name?” Of course he got it right. Then it was my turn. The first thing that came to mind was, “When is my birthday?”

Pause.

Pause.

Confusion.

Guess what? He didn’t even know what month my birthday was! No kidding. So I tried not to get hurt (not that I’m that easily offended). I told him my birthday (February 25th), even throwing in that it is only 6 days before his (to help him remember) and then told him he could have his soda. Later that night, I asked him again when my birthday was again.

“Uhhh. Umm. It’s in April, right?”

Ughhh. Kids.

Bella broke out with a weird rash a few weeks ago– all over her body. The only dietary changes I had made was that she had suddenly decided she absolutely loved eggs and wanted them every morning rather than the usual twice a week or so. I didn’t think it was the eggs, but I eliminated them just to see what would happen. The rash just got worse. The doctor said it was just eczema, and told us to use some Aquaphor. It’s gotten a bit better.

A few days ago, she got another weird rash– this one totally different. Similar to chicken pox but with no symtoms and the sores were a bit different– circular shaped. The picture above really does it no justice, it’s a mean rash.

So I took her back to the doctor. The doctor had never seen anything like it and thought that it was probably a virus, since Bella also got a cold the same day the rash showed up. She mentioned Staph, and I immediately panicked. She told me to just watch it, call if anything started showing up in the mouth and eyes. She told me that since it could be anything, and since Bella had no other real symptoms, to just go about our days as usual.

Bella doesn’t seem bothered at all about it, and I’m sure it’s just fine. But Staph? Staph is a scary word these days, huh?

Anyways, we carried on about our day as usual– we went to the Children’s Museum where she got to feed the fish with the owner. She got to play with her best friend. And she played and laughed like a beautiful, healthy, bright little girl.

Aren’t children the most wonderful and resilient little things? If it were me with a head to toe rash, I’d be laying around whining and trying to soak up as much attention as possible. She’s one tough cookie. Momma could learn a thing or two.