The time I met a boy and fell in love...

That's when our story began. That's when I first met him. That's when I became one of the lucky ones.

Maybe I'm refusing to grow up but it seems like just yesterday.  January 22, 2003. 

It was a blind date. We both went to different schools. My best friend, Kara, who I went to school with was dating Mark. Mark went to school with Brian and they were friends. Kara had been talking about setting me up with Brian for a few months before we actually met. He had a girlfriend at the time, but Kara would always mention him in conversation and tout how perfect we would be for one another.  I never gave it much thought. 

Then January rolled around. Brian was newly single. There was testing at our school and if you were a Senior, you were exempt from the testing, so we weren't required to be at school until 11.  Kara asked if I wanted to go out to breakfast with her and Mark and that I could meet Brian. I was hesitant, but said yes. 

We all met at Kara's and headed to Einstein bagels for breakfast. I vividly remember seeing Brian for the first time and thinking...what in the world!? He had on an olive green bomber jacket -circa middle school. He had his arm in a sling. I wasn't even sure what I was getting myself in to.  He was cute but his fashion sense was questionable at best. 

Breakfast was uneventful. There was conversation but nothing noteworthy.  I actually thought Brian was an ass. I noticed a large scar that spanned the entire length of his forearm. When I asked what had happened, he responded, "shark bite". Oh, so he thought he was funny.  I never got the true story until later. 

We ended breakfast and drove back to Kara's. We said our goodbyes and headed off to school.  I honestly thought it was a flop of a date - he didn't even ask for my number!  

Later that evening, my phone rang and it was Brian! I was shocked. He had gotten my number from Kara, which scored him a few more points in my eyes. We ended up talking for a decent amount of time and I enjoyed our conversation. He asked me out on a date the following Saturday, which ended up turning out much better than our breakfast date.  He was a really great guy!

Throughout the years, we've had our ups and downs. We've been through a lot. Yet through it all, I've never been more thankful for that morning on January 22nd at the little bagel shop. 

I love you Brian!  Happy 11 years and here's to many more!

Look at the date!  We were on a cruise on McKenzie's birthday!
Little did we know that 5 years later, we would welcome her into our lives!

Five on Friday

Happy Friday! We made it! It's time for the weekly edition of 5 on Friday! Link-up and join in the fun!

One. 

This weekend, I am so excited that we have absolutely nothing major planned! Prior to October, we have had an event every weekend! Add in the craziness of the holiday season and this Mama is tired! We can do what we want to do and have no real obligations! Thank goodness!

Two. 

Last weekend, Brian and I were both in a wedding in New Jersey. I can't wait for some of the pictures to be finalized, because I can't wait to show you. It was one of the nicest weddings that I've ever been to...and probably will ever go to! To give you some idea, Torrey Smith (wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens) had his wedding there over the summer. I can't even begin to describe it. The pictures will tell all! Stay tuned!

Three.

I received the Whitney English Day Designer for Christmas and I am loving it! So does someone else apparently!

I'm such a planner though and feeling like we need a way to organize the items for our home! I'm really loving the Emily Ley Simplified Life Binder.  

I can see Brian rolling his eye's now...like how many binders do we really need! It's an illness, I'll admit it! Yet, if something ever happened to me, he would be able to pick up right where I left off...and I'm sure he'd be thankful for that! It's a purchase that's happening in the very near future!

Four. 

McKenzie started a new class - gymnastics! We've done the MyGym routine before, but wanted to try something different. Tuesday night was her second session and was much better than the first. She completely didn't want to cooperate the first time!  Circle time - no way!  Following directions?  It was as if we were speaking a different language!

This week it was like she was a different child! She engaged, tried new things and followed directions perfectly! What a toddler!

This class is a little chaotic, but fun. They're learning basic skills - such as tumblesaults, balance and going under and over obstacles. It goes until the end of March so I can't wait to see how much more she learns! Plus, we're taking it with friends - twins, which makes it that much better!

Five.

I am not a huge reader - other than blogs obviously - but I am feeling that need to read! I just want to unwind every night with a little reading. This ultimately means it will take me months to read a book, because I fall asleep after a few short minutes! I've heard great things about The Fault in Our Stars by John Green and have just downloaded it to start tonight! Have any of you read this yet?

What are some other great read's?

Check out Darci over at The Good Life Blog and her friends for some more Five on Friday Fun!

A Little Perspective

I recently attended a retreat for a group that I'm a part of at work. It's a peer responder group that helps staff members remain resilient after stressful patient related events. Most of the time, it's from complicated care or unexpected outcomes. It's purpose is to treat the second victim in ways that minimize burnout and drop out. It's a truly great program!

What I thought was going to be a retreat to hone in on my peer responder skills, turned into a renewing and revitalizing retreat for me personally.

I've been feeling anxious and stressed. As most Mom's do, I often feel pulled in a million directions. As much as I try to remind myself that I am only one person and that the dishes/cleaning/straightening can wait, I also know that sometimes things need to get done and I'm not always able to play. It's a balance and one that continually strive to find.

McKenzie has been extra needy recently. There are weeks where she does great - actively playing on her own for small amounts of time and then, BAM! She needs me next to her for everything. And I mean like right next to her! Sitting near her isn't enough. You must be on the floor and she has to be in your lap. I often call her my kangaroo and tell her to get in my pouch, because I believe if she could, she would!

I know these moments are fleeting and that one day I will long for her to want to spend time with me. I know that she won't want me to be that close forever.

As I was thinking about all of that one my drive in, the retreat opened with this slide...

I could feel myself starting to fill up. It completely puts things into perspective. Whether we're going through a difficult time in life, or just the every-day struggles of motherhood and balance, these will be the most cherished times of my life. 

I'm pretty sure this says it all. It's all about perspective. If I can remind myself of this daily, then I can learn to see the beauty of all of the these little moments...messy house and all!

Wake Up Call

Sorry for my absence from this space, but the first few weeks of the new year have been eventful to say the least!

It all started with a health scare.  I had a wonderful day with family on New Year's Day.  Nothing out of the ordinary.  I felt fine.  Early in the evening, I developed horrible heartburn.  I have never had heartburn prior to pregnancy and have never had it since I delivered McKenzie.   I chalked it up to eating something that didn't agree with me.  I took some Tums before I went to bed.

Brian was working night shfit, so it was just McKenzie and I.  I tossed and turned all night and didn't sleep well at all.  McKenzie cried out for me around 2 a.m.  I got up to rock her.  As I was sitting in the glider with her, my heart started racing and I broke out in to a cold sweat.  Not sure what was causing it or what was going on, I put McKenzie back in bed (still not asleep and now screaming because she wanted me).  I grabbed a glass of water, but that didn't help.  I felt as though I was going to pass out and my heart was going to beat out of my chest.  I messaged Brian.

While I was talking to him, I put on my heart monitor that I use when I work out.  Sitting completely still, my heart was beating in the high 160's.  Super scary.  That's what is typically is when I'm running and working out.

He said that he was coming home and would be there as fast as he could.  I hung up and Googled my symptoms.  Many of them are the signs that women show when they are having heart problems.  I went to the bathroom and found the baby aspirin.  In my clouded mind, I swallowed the aspirin instead of chewing them.  Duh...not as effective as quickly if it was heart trouble.

I felt worse.  I was shaking and cold and felt as though I was going to pass out.  I called Brian back and told him that I was going to call 911.  The ambulance arrived a few minutes before he got home.  He took over with Kenz, because up until this point, she was in my arms.  She was as scared as I was and wasn't sure what was going on.  I felt bad for scaring her.

The ambulance took me to the local hospital.  I never had chest pain - just racing heart and a heaviness in my chest - not any real pain though.  Either way, it was all super scary.

Brian ended up bringing Kenz to the hospital with him...poor girl at 3 a.m.  That's the downside of having family, but living so far away.  They would have taken an hour or so to get here.  She was an angel though and curled up in his lap and pointed to things in the room.  She is such a trooper.

My EKG's and labs all came back normal.  They gave me IV fluids and when the bag was finished running, my heart rate had returned to normal.  They discharged me and told me to follow-up with my doctor.

I was scared out of my mind.  I'm am finally starting to feel good again.  I researched it more over the past few days and some say that this can happen to women prior to getting their period.  I fell right in that time frame, so I'm hoping that's causing all of this.  If not, I'm at a loss.  I've never had any issues before.

I write all of this to say that I'm going to start taking better care of myself.  I need to work out more.  I need to eat better.  I need to take care of myself and I need to make the time to do it.  Whether my lifestyle had anything to do with this incidient or not, the extra weight and unhealthy ways can't be good for my heart.

I joined  Diet Bet and have until February 4th to lose 4% of my body weight.  I paid $25 to join a competition with 525 other people who also bet $25.  The pot is at $13,125.  Whomever loses 4% of their inital weight wins and they split the pot.  At the very least I'll get my $25 back and maybe a little more.  I thought it would be a fun way to lose weight and as well as keep my honest and on track.

We shall see.  All I know is that it's time to start taking care of me!

Five on Friday - Influenster Edition!

I'm joining Darci over at The Good Life Blog for our first edition of 5 on Friday for 2014! I'm resolutioned out, so I'm going to highlight the five items I received in my Jolly Vox Box from Influenseter.

I joined Influenster about a year ago. I signed up, messed around with it and then forgot about it. Something made me log on a few months ago and I'm so happy I did.

For those of you who don't know, Influenster is an an online community where you can learn about new products and review products that you love and use every day! The more active you are on the site, the more influential they deem you to be. The more socially connected you are, the better! By being active on their site and compelling "challenges", you qualify for boxes of new products that are sent to you for free to review! It's a win-win!

I received my first Vox Box before the holidays! I was literally running to the mailbox each day to see if it had arrived. I know...I need a life! It's the little things though.

I have to say, I was not disappointed!

I received the following items to review:

One.

Rimmel London Show Off Lip Lacquer

I have to say, I was disappointed in the color. I instantly knew that the gold/nude tone was not going to work for this fair skinned blonde. I tried it anyway and I have to say, although not a fan of the color, I love the product. It's the perfect combination of lip stick color and lip gloss shine, without feeling heavy and bulky. I love some of the other colors they offer, so it's a future must have!

Two.

NYC New York Color HD Color Trio Eye Shadow

THe HD Color Trio is perfect! I love the coverage and the colors. It's perfect to wear to work, but then create a smokier eye for the evening. The eye shadow lasted the entire day and didn't crease. I was so excited to receive this, because the colors are enough to look like you're wearing make-up, yet neutral enough to wear to work.  

Three.

Duckling Mini Roll in Pink Zebra

This was such a fun item - The Duckling Mini-Roll in Pink Zebra. It's perfect for accenting arts and crafts. The options are endless with this product. Hang pictures with it, create a key colder, or wrap the tops of your keys to make them stand out. If you are having a themed party, you could even wrap water bottles to add a special touch to your party! This is just one of the many prints that Duckling makes. I completely plan on checking them all out and purchasing more!

Four.

Puff's Tissues To Go with Lotion

I've actually used the Puff's Plus Lotion tissues in the To-Go pack before, but I have to say, receiving them from Influenster was a great reminder of how perfect they are! With a messy toddler and cold season in full-force, I carry these with me in my purse and in my car. You never know when a mess will occur!  

Five.

Skinny Cow Candy - Chocolate Peanut Butter

Skinny Cow has nailed it with this one!  I've been a fan of the ice cream sandwiches, but the recently started delving into the candy world. For 130 calories a pack (which includes three chocolate squares), these are the perfect "cheat day" item. You can satisfy our craving with this milk chocolate and peanut butter candy, while not breaking the calorie bank!  

I'm off to have a relaxing weekend with no real plans other than to relax and catch up with friends!  

Have an incredible weekend! 

I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes.

New Year...New Goals

Happy New Year!  

It’s my favorite time of year!  The time that I always find myself making resolutions and setting goals that I fail to keep!  More often than not, it’s because I set an unattainable and unrealistic goal!  Who wouldn't want to lose 60 pounds and look like a Victoria’s Secret model!?  Am I right?   The one thing I've realized though is that these unattainable goals lead to failure.  I start off strong each year, but my mid-February, I've lost sight of the goal.  This year, I’m going to follow tried and true advice.  My goal is going to be attainable and realistic.  Ready for it?

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I’m going to eat healthy and work-out at least 3 times a week.  That’s attainable right?  With God’s grace, 2014 will be a year of growth for our family, so although I'd love to be losing weight, it may not be about that.  It quite possibly could about be about being healthy and active while gaining weight…if you get my drift!  

Here’s my plan of attack:  Choose healthier options while cooking at home or eating out.  Instead of the second helping, use portion control.  Instead of French fries and carbs, choose a veggie, salad or grilled chicken.  By making small, but conscious decisions, it’s my hope that it becomes a new way of life.   If the reward to that is losing weight, then it’s an added reward.  Regardless, I will feel better and be healthier and that’s all I could hope and wish for in 2014!   

Here’s to an incredible 2014 and to keeping our resolutions!

Happy New Year!

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Happy New Year from Heartbeats and Little Feet! I'll be enjoying the day with my family and hope you are as well! 

I'll be back tomorrow to share in some of my goals for the New Year! See you then!