from baseballs and blue to pink and bows...

i hate to admit it, but the pink is kind of growing on me.

if you know me then you know i'm not the girliest of girls. in fact, i might have never touched a barbie doll if it weren't for my little sister. she was always the one wearing "princess crowns" and putting on mom's high heels. i, on the other hand, was too busy getting scars from playing with my favorite neighbor boys and now i absolutely cannot wait to pass on my TMNT collection to rylan.

but what can ya' do? God knows i need to learn how to french braid and i've always loved a good pedicure. (can someone please for the love of all womanhood show me how to french braid? those pinterest tutorials are no good!)

anyway, we've been acquiring "the pink" for a couple of months now. we lucked out by having a niece so close to rylan's age-yay for gently used clothes! we got the crib set up last weekend, but are still on the search for a few more items-double stroller...what?? oh yea and ry needs a convertible car seat (perfect timing kid!). let's not even go there on little lady's name...talk about afraid of commitment! phuh! we've still got 9 weeks...right?

oh and what's that??....i can already hear the cries of the "second child syndrome"-"mom, why isn't my baby book finished?", "mom, why are there sooooo many pictures of rylan?"..."mom..". can we just blame daddy on this one for a second? i mean he's the one that's a second child, shouldn't he have the sympathy? this first born momma says, "that's life kid." ;)

so, what about blue bows?

great compromise right? :)

Bloglovin'

as most of you may know, google reader is soon to be toast, but do not despair! i have good news for you people! there's still time to import the blogs you read over from google reader to bloglovin'. i just did it and it was so simple!

just click this link and follow the steps! hope to see you guys over on bloglovin'!

por favor.

hello friends.

i was just wondering if you would take a few seconds, like seriously 5 seconds, to vote for us on Top Baby Blogs?! they reset the votes today and we need your help to get listed again! you can vote 1x/day. 

thanks so much! happy sunday!

click here

i'm on the hunt.

...for the perfect pair of skinny jeans. i'm not one for liking super low waist lines as i'd rather not have to worry about keeping my backside covered. i feel a tad bit ridiculous running around trying to hold my shirt down in the back while wrangling up a small child and cleaning all the crushed up cheerios from the carpet. i literally need to grow an extra arm...go ahead and make that two extra arms. anywho, i want to know where you guys got your "go to" jeans! thanks for the help!

Guest Post: Postpartum Workout

hello! today i'm having Katie, a mommy and health blogger, from "Moore from Katie" share a bit about postpartum workouts for all you mommies out there. hope you find it helpful!

Postpartum Workout Timeline

Many women are eager to get back into shape after the birth of their baby—I wanted to slim down immediately! It's important to note that you shouldn't be jumping right back into a vigorous routine until your baby is several months old. Pregnancy and birth affect women's bodies in more ways than weight gain. Your hormones are surging, your breasts are full of milk, and a new baby is sitting in your lap. You will get back into shape over time, so don't rush it. Start with a few easy exercises then gradually work up to a more intense workout.

Day 3
A few days after giving birth you can begin to tighten your pelvic floor muscles with specific exercises. These exercises are easy to perform, and you can do them anywhere, anytime. Do them every time you feed the baby, or before you drift off to sleep at night.

You can also begin pelvic tilts quite soon after birth. Pelvic tilts will help tighten the abdominal muscles that got stretched and possibly separated during pregnancy. Lie on your back to perform a pelvic tilt. Raise your knees up, keeping your feet flat on the floor. Squeeze all of your lower ab muscles as you slowly pull your pelvis up and in. Hold the muscles tight for a few seconds, then release and repeat. I liked to do this exercise while my daughter was napping or lying on the floor beside me.

Week 1
The first week of being a new mom has most likely been a blur of nappies, breastfeeding, bottles and no sleep. Many women feel content loving on their babies 24/7. After the first week, I started to feel a bit stir crazy since I had no semblance of my former routine. If you're itching to get out of the house, try a leisurely walk. I loved to bring my daughter out in her pram or front carrier, and take in the fresh air. Just remember to take it slow and easy. If your post natal bleeding becomes heavier or painful, you've probably pushed it too far.

Week 3
Many women are ready to get into a more physical routine three weeks after birth. However, it depends on your unique birthing circumstances. Women who had c-sections will need to wait longer. The best thing to do is to talk to your doctor before beginning an exercise routine. Just as your doctor advised you on delivery decisions, like pain medication, cord blood banking, and immunizations, your doctor can help you develop a good routine to work exercise back into your life safely. I had a great relationship with my doctor throughout my whole term and felt very comfortable asking all of my health and diet questions.

It's important to treat your body well by eating healthy and not overdoing it. If you are breastfeeding, your body still needs extra calories to produce enough milk for the baby. Breastfeeding moms often find the pounds melting away, even though they are still "eating for two". If you exercise too much, your body might be burning too many calories to produce an adequate milk supply.

Week 8 and Beyond
When your bleeding stops, and you aren't feeling any soreness or irritation anymore, you can begin a more rigorous exercise routine. Getting back to my yoga and running routine was a great release physically and emotionally, Now that your body is ready, the hardest part will be finding the time to squeeze in those workouts on a regular basis.

“Katie Moore has written and submitted this article. Katie is an active blogger who discusses the topics of motherhood, children, fitness, health and all other things Mommy. She enjoys writing, blogging, and meeting new people! To connect with Katie contact her via her blog, Moore From Katie or her twitter, @moorekm26.”

Blog Hop

It's Tuesday again which means it's time for the GFC Blog Hop!

When I want to follow a blog the first thing I look for is GFC (Google Friend Connect), it's so easy and  nice to be able to go and see all of the blogs you follow in one spot. It's really a great tool to have. One side note- Did you know you can follow through GFC using your Twitter Account? TRUE, it's definitely an option! If you are interested in co-hosting the next GFC Blog Hop send me an email at melissa@thelifeofanotsoordinarywife.com

Ok, so let's get to the party, shall we?

RULES are simple:

1. Follow your host via GFC

The First link below

2. Follow your co-hosts via GFC

The Next 8 links below

3. Link up below using your main blog url not a specific post.

4. Make sure to visit some of the blogs in the link up and follow them via GFC 

and if you want to leave them a comment, I'm sure they'd appreciate that as well.

5. Tweet about this blog hop

Tweet

6. Share about this blog hop by grabbing a button and putting it on your sidebar!

<a href="http://www.thelifeofanotsoordinarywife.com/search/label/gfcbloghop"> <img src="http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z237/melissaenault/gfcbloghop-1.gif" border="0" /></a>

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to do before baby

after visiting with a couple of friends who are getting ready to welcome their new little ones into the world, i decided to make a list of some things to get done before the baby comes. this list is obviously not exhaustive, but here are a few that came to mind:

// go to the movies. that's right. did you know that going to an actual movie theater after having a baby is nearly impossible? husband and i have only been twice since ry was been born. enjoy one last good movie together!

// read some baby books. in preparation for ry's arrival i read Baby Wise and What To Expect When Your Expecting. both of which i recommend. Baby Wise was really good in helping me figure out how to get a schedule going for my baby and WTEWYE was very informative on what was going on with my body and the baby and also helped me prepare for labor.

// go on an overnight trip. spontaneous overnight trips are a bit more complicated and sparse once baby joins the picture.

// freeze some meals. this was something i was so thankful i had done! coming home from the hospital and trying to figure out what in the world you are doing with this new little person can be quite stressful so having meals prepared ahead of time is a life saver! we were also blessed by having my mom stay with us for about a week and our church family brought us meals as well. we were very very thankful for this.

// pamper yourself. go.get.a.pregnancy.massage. you'll thank me later! and don't forget the obligatory pedicure!

// clean your house. make sure you, or convince the mister in your life, to do a pretty good cleaning a week or a couple of weeks before your due date. this will help reduce stress for all you neat freaks (like me) out there since there won't be much time to focus on housework until you start getting the hang of being a new sleepy momma.

// pack your bags. make sure you have a bag for daddy, momma and baby.

// get alone time. one of the things i miss the most is just simply having time to myself. don't tell husband, but sometimes i take extra long showers for this very reason. ;)

// find a pediatrician. i know this is especially important when having a baby boy and choosing whether to circumcise or not.

// pray for your baby. start praying as soon as possible for this new little life!

// GET SOME SLEEP!

happy friday!

check out this pack 'n play & update

via

i saw this pack 'n play on the today show and i thought i'd share because it's pretty awesome.

expensive, but awesome.

i despise having to put our pack 'n play together. that's why the mr. is usually the one to do it.

he's pretty good about saving me from pulling my hair out.

this pack 'n play is literally a breeze to set up and take down.

watch the video from 4moms here.

also just a quick update on the family i posted about yesterday: someone paid up front the costs of the medical evacuation to Turkey! they still need to raise money to pay him back, but God is moving mountains for them and all they are looking for now is a doctor/hospital to receive baby Joshua. please continue to pray!

thanks! hope you are having a great wednesday!

getting organized

i've been feeling a little unorganized and unproductive lately, although i'm actually a pretty organized person. it drives me bonkers i tell ya to not have things in order or planned out and to not see results. so i've been thinking of some ways to help me get things running a little more smoothly around here. if you know me, you know i'm all about efficiency. and i like to see results people! quickly! so, i thought it would be good if i assigned certain tasks to a day of the week. i like the accountability. for myself. this will help me get things done, right??

::monday:: grocery run/meal planning day

::tuesday:: free day

::wednesday:: also a free day :)

::thursday:: cleaning day

::friday:: blog prepping/random tasks day

how do you guys stay organized and on top of life?
tips?

absent

hey people!

we are out of town this week while daddy is working so i'll probably 

be absent from here for a few days.

hope you guys are having a lovely week!

mr. chunky legs and i will be back soon.

the worst haircut ever...

you.must.listen.to.this.
seriously.hilarious.

love it or lose it?

this may become a new thing around here or maybe not.
i'm not really sure yet, but i just had to put this out there.

floral pants..

           Source: allthingselegant.tumblr.com via Elizabeth on Pinterest

i just can't wrap my head around these.

am i the only one??

love it 

or

lose it?

where are you, FALL?

ok i've about had it with you, summer.
you are going all out this year.
100 degree + temps and killing all the lovely things that spring brought about.

i'm so over you.
fall, please hurry up why don't cha?!
i'm ready for cardigans, boots and scarves!
oh and don't forget the pretty colors!

Source: classy-in-the-city.tumblr.com via Edna on Pinterest

Source: mojitosandblow.tumblr.com via Karen Martone on Pinterest

Source: classy-in-the-city.tumblr.com via Edna on Pinterest

Source: stylecaster.com via Abbie on Pinterest

Source: google.com via Lindsey on Pinterest

Source: blogs.babble.com via Michelle on Pinterest

and pumpkin coming back-YES!!!!!

so i'm in love...

...with this house

seriously, i can't get over it.

she's adorable isn't she?!

(and she's totally a she)

we drove around her all stalker-ish last night drooling.

too bad we aren't looking to buy.

funny thing is she's literally 4 miles from a job husband just turned down.

oh well, some things just aren't meant to be and some aren't meant to be right now.

we shall see in due time.

honest toddler

oh my holy hot dogs have i got a treat for you!
have you guys heard of honest toddler?
i'm following them on twitter and can i just say HI-larious!
their tweets sound like words straight from the mouths of babes!

some of my personal favs:
-mama did her hair. it was so pretty i had to touch it. didn't realize i had jam on my fingers.
-toddler tip: bedtime? DO NOT GO QUIETLY. RAGE AGAINST THE DYING OF THE LIGHT.
-imma lay low for a little while. going to the kitchen to squeeze some bananas.
-they need to choose. teeth or hair. we're not going to brush both daily.
-not even noon and mama is fading. extended blinks. wake up, lady. we've got 6 hours to go. yay!!! :)
-just ran into a wall. when did we get that?
-daddy free styled a story. didn't make a lick of sense.
-kitchen floor just slapped me in the face OMG! :(
-that was weird. daddy's sunglasses just exploded themselves in my hand.
-my mom is pretending that her hair is just "wind blown". explain the clothes then. did you or did you not wake up in that dress?
-one year old at the park goes down the slide alone. and the crowd goes wild!

follow on twitter here for some good momma laughs!

avoiding melt-age

hey guys!
hope you all are enjoying this swelt-abulously hot weekend!
i'm just here, you know, trying not to melt.
it.is.so.hot.outside.
seriously people. it's hot EVERYWHERE. even inside. ;)
but, for real, i'm not joking.

so i just wanted to stop by and make sure you all were alive. no heat strokes right?
oh, and also to let you know that i'm guest posting over at Little Homemade Housewife.
-i'm sharing my moss coaster DIY, but there are also some new pics of Ry in it too. and it's always fun seeing what he's up to. :) check it out here.

hope there's no melting going on your way!
ta-ta for now (thanks for that one Tigger ;)

on homemade baby food

once Ry was about 4 months old i started experimenting with making baby food at home. first off let me warn you by saying i had no idea what i was doing during my initial trial run and am still kind of trying to figure it all out.

attempt numero uno did not go so well. we tried pureeing peas in a blender that we already owned and it didn't turn out as smooth as we were hoping. so first we made an investment in a Ninja and it has worked wonderfully! we also purchased a steamer and ice cube trays.

i'm just going to give a quick rundown of the steps i go through when making his food.

1. i like to soak my fruits and veggies in water and a little bit of vinegar for about 10 minutes to get them all clean then rinse

2. cut/cube your veggie/fruit

3. steam/bake/boil until tender

4. blend-get all the chunks out!

5. poor into trays-(tap the trays on the counter a few times to make sure it's packed well)
6. freeze

after frozen you can just pop them out and store in freezer bags!

it really is pretty simple and i've actually only had to do it two times so far! i like knowing that Ry is getting fresh ingredients and not all the yucky additives!

now if i could just get more of it into his mouth than on his body! poor thing is a mess and loves his momma's milk!

there are a couple of sites i've used as references: here and here.

any questions? tips?

good luck in the kitchen mommas!

p.s. be sure to come back next week for my 200 follower giveaway!

speed date

hey guys! let's get to know each other! SPEED DATE STYLE!!

i am a christian.
i'm so thankful that God continued to pursue me when i ran from Him so many times.
God has changed me from who i once was and i am forever grateful.
i met my husband in college.
we got married at age 22 during a terrible ice storm.
we have been married for 4 years and 7 months.
our son, Rylan, was born last december.
we love being parents.
this december we will be celebrating 5 years of marriage, Ry's first birthday and Christmas all in a row.
i've been imagining/planning my son's first birthday party for months. it's still 5 months away.
i don't like chocolate.
i love China.
i hate driving. it makes me nervous. but so does riding. -confessions of a backseat driver.
i take too many pictures.
i am very nostalgic/sentimental.
i am a dental hygienist. show me your teeth!
one of my favorite things to do is play games.
i love sports.
i love country music.
i love sitting on the back porch-when it's not too hot, not too cold.
the ocean is calling my name. like always.
husband is good at math. i am not.
i like to shop. husband does not.

ok enough about me! LINK UP here.

Meet the Fockers & the Griswolds

ever have those days, you know the ones where everything seems to go wrong?

the baby won't eat his big boy food. he just tightens his lips when momma's "spoon  airplane" comes in for landing and if you ever do happen to get food into his mouth he just spits it out or somehow manages to fling some onto the carpet and you go to clean it, but end up just basically mushing it in more.

yeah, me neither.

or you try all the usual things to get the baby to sleep, but nothing works. nada. baby turns into a blubbering mess and you want to pull all your hair out.

yeah, me neither.

or when you've played with every toy in the house, but nothing satisfies and you can't help but wonder if baby is teething. then you realize your probably wrong about that too.

me neither.

i can't stand movies like Meet the Fockers or National Lampoon's Vacation where everything goes wrong. seriously, i get so frustrated i want to jump through the screen and punch Clark Griswold and Ben Stiller's character, Greg, in the face!

i'm just thankful that my Mr. is always there to rescue me during my "everything goes wrong" days.

thanks babe. i'm glad you're not Clark Griswold.

sorry i left you hangin...

but...
we planned a surprise visit to see my mother-in-law and i was under strict orders to keep it top secret.

i'll be back to my normal obsessive baby posting this week.

sneak peek:

feels good to be home :)