Life Lately

Who knows if I'll ever get to a point where I'm checking in here on the regular. In the meantime, I want to make sure I document life here and there because I love being able to come to my little space on the Internet and look back on things. With that being said, let's catch up, shall we?

I'm still trying to work through the Couch25K program. To sum up why it's taking me so long, I've been inconsistent and slow to move to the next week when I'm not feeling ready. The good news? I haven't given up. I'm currently struggling through week 6 of the program and will probably do the whole program over again once I complete it. I truly want to get back to a place where I enjoy running and I just keep going back to the thought that no matter how slow I go, I'm still going.

We took Emma to her first pumpkin patch...and they were out of pumpkins. It was a gorgeous day, Emma and I wore matching shirts and we had my mom and Jonathan's parents with us so it was still a pretty great day aside from the lack of pumpkins!

My favorite part of this day was actually when we got home later that afternoon. The weather was gorgeous so Jonathan laid a blanket down in the backyard and the three of us just laid there enjoying the last bit of our Sunday together. Emma was in such a happy mood. She was so content just laying there with us playing with her toy elephant. I love going out on adventures as a little family but nothing beats simple quality time together at home like this.

We recently spent a weekend in Bradenton, FL for a wedding. It was Emma's first hotel stay and it was super sweet of my parents to drive 2+ hours to hang out in our hotel room with Emma while Jonathan and I went to our friend's wedding that evening. We enjoyed a weekend of gorgeous weather, a fun little road trip with our little girl, a fun night with our friends and it was just really nice to get away for a quick trip! My parents had so much fun babysitting Emma and I'm so thankful they had some quality time with their grand baby! 

We didn't end up buying a Halloween costume for Emma this year. I looked around a bit but I couldn't find anything I thought would fit her well enough and I couldn't justify spending the money knowing she'd really only wear it for a cute photo and that would be it. I did get her a cute Halloween outfit and the most adorable pumpkin booties, though!

I think I speak for all of us when I say I'm glad the election is over. I don't want to get into it too much because I don't have the energy, honestly. I didn't plan on saying anything about it, but it's obviously on my mind and I want to always use this space to share what's truly on my heart. I think one thing I've tried to remember through the entire election and now post-election is that you don't have to attend every argument you're invited to. The personal attacks and pure anger people have shown each other online recently has me praying for peace more than ever. I don't need to tell you where I stand in regards to the election results. What I will tell you is when I made my decision who to vote for, I felt peace in whatever the outcome would be and do you want to know why? Because in my heart I know that no matter who is president, Jesus is King. No matter where you fall on the political spectrum, if you trust that God has a plan, that God is taking care of us, then you know the outcome of this election is not a burden you need to carry with you. Imagine the peace all those angered by this election would feel if they handed the fear and worry they have over to God? My goodness. 

I've seen so many people saying, "What will I tell my children?" Honestly, I'm not worried about this for a lot of reasons. I think no matter who is president I wouldn't necessarily want my daughter to use them as any kind of role model in her life. Emma is going to learn values, morals, how to be a good person from us as her parents. She's going to see examples of this through the people in her life as she grows up and I hope those people are her role models. I hope from us, she learns to be a strong woman, a kind person, a lover of Jesus, a compassionate individual, work ethic and the importance of giving. We are responsible of making sure she understands that even though someone is in the spotlight, whether it be a celebrity, a politician, any kind of leader, that we are all flawed and what you see isn't necessarily what is true. When she's old enough to learn about this election and future elections, her daddy and I will tell her the truth about why we voted for who we voted for and she will know that while there are pros and cons to every decision we make, that our reasons were valid and well thought out. Okay, I'm going to stop here and just say if your head is still spinning, if you feel scared or angry, I hope you will pray and trust that ultimately, He is in control. 

Moving on...I mentioned in Emma's 3 month update that we made the decision to stop breastfeeding after learning she'd only gained 3 ounces in an entire month. I was certainly sad and disappointed, but I let myself feel sad about it that day and decided to just let go of all of it and move on. The important thing is doing what is best for our little girl and I am just thankful we were able to make it a few months. We went back to the doctor on Monday after a week of formula and she was up 7 ounces! Praise God. She's been much happier and I feel a sense of relief and much less anxiety knowing she is getting what she needs now. Emma's pediatrician has been so great and I'm thankful they've been so proactive in regards to her weight having us come in for regular weight checks and staying so involved. 

It's certainly my favorite time of year and there is so much to look forward to and so much to enjoy. Jonathan's work schedule has already started to lighten up a bit thanks to the cooler temps we've been having. He was home yesterday at 2 PM and I couldn't believe it when he walked in the door. I'm so looking forward to celebrating Thanksgiving and gearing up for our first Christmas as a family of three. Tomorrow we are hosting adult field day and I can't wait. We did this last year to celebrate my sister's birthday and it was a huge success so I've been excited to put another one together! The weather is supposed to be perfect and it'll be fun to have a big group of friends and family together. 

On that note, I have quite a list of chores to get done to prepare so I'm out of here. I will leave you with this adorable photo of our happy little girl.

I hope your weekend of full of fun, beautiful weather and lots of adventure. 

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