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10 Things You Probably Don’t Know About Me

Previously In The Life Of Erika

With social media these days I feel like we all think we know so much about everyone, but really it’s all about what we want to portray. If you follow any of my social media platforms you probably know that I am extremely into fitness and Wonder Woman is my alter ego. But I can guarantee you don’t know everything about me… So here goes, 10 things you probably didn’t know about me…

Number 1: I am A Giant Nerd

I love comic books, I have a mountain of Wonder Woman comic books at home. I am especially fond of superheros, I know you probably had an idea about that with the Wonder Woman talk. My son’s room is comic book themed with mainly DC characters. Not only am I a comic book nerd, I also used to play Dungeons and Dragons back in the day… along with World of War Craft. Surprise!! Bet y’all didn’t realize I was that nerdy.

Number 2: I Didn’t Know I Was Mexican Until I was In 1st Grade

I came home from school and I was really upset. My Mom asked why and I said, “Some kid called me a Mexican at school today.” She responded with, “And?” With all the confidence I had I said, “Well I’m not!” My Mom laughed and motioned to herself saying, “Umm… yes you are honey.” Obviously shocked and confused I said, “But my last name is Hopper…” With a chuckle she continued to explain, “That’s because your Dad is White.” Little me was so shocked my only response was, “WHY DIDN’T ANYONE TELL ME?!”

Number 3: I Love To Sing

Growing up I was always involved in choir. Everything from children’s choir, church choir, all the way to elite choir in high school. Music has always been an important part of my life. I use music to deal with anything and everything. From emotional breakdowns to just tuning the world out in the gym. Anytime I am in my car you can bet my radio is blasting and I am singing at the top of my lungs.

Number 4: I Have An Extremely High Pain Tolerance

I had really severe Asthma as a child. I had a breathing machine in my house, it was that bad. It could be why my pain tolerance is the way it is. By the time I complained to my parents about my chest hurting my lung had collapsed. As I got older my pain tolerance got even higher. I broke my hand in elementary school, one of my best friends at the time jumped on it accidentally. All I heard was the “crack” sound of my bone breaking, I walked over to the couch and sat down until my parent’s picked me up from the sitter. There were no tears, I just sat there and dealt with the pain.

In high school I broke my shin playing softball. I was playing second base and a runner went for my bag and instead of sliding she basically put her entire body into my leg. I played the rest of the game and didn’t get it checked out, I hate doctors. Another incident occurred while I was in high school, also playing softball, was the Triple Crown World Series. I was sliding into home plate and I hit the catcher… HARD. I got up and she was down in the dirt crying, I walked into the dugout where all of my teammates looked at my in horror and pointed at my leg. I had apparently caught the catchers shin guard clip with my knee and sliced it completely open. A couple of team mom’s were RN’s and they pounced on me to clean it out. I flopped my skin back on, taped it up, and played 2 more games that day. I went to the hospital that night, where I got 28 stitches and went on to play 8 more games that week.

In college I blew my ankle at softball practice. It got stuck under the fence, I rebounded and fell, but my foot stayed. I had to be carried off the field, but I ended up walking out of practice that day. I walked on my mangled ankle for a week and a half before being forced to get an MRI. I had torn and stretched several ligaments, had a displaced fracture inside my bone, and my bones were bruised and bleeding. Long story short… I’m a freak.

Number 5: I am A Terrible Liar

My entire body rejects the lies I am trying to tell. I chuckle nervously, I smile awkwardly and my triple chin comes out. It’s hilarious to those that know me, but it’s actually the worst. I could say something while not looking directly at who I am talking to, but as soon as they say, “Erika, look at me and tell me that again.” It’s game over, they know and it usually ends in a big laugh for everyone involved. I am the WORST liar.

Number 6: I am Crafty/Artsy

I love making things and creating things in general. I used to draw and paint all the time when I was growing up, I used to be pretty good at it. But, life tends to get in the way as you get older and I am out of practice when it comes to those two. These days I enjoy creating my own home decor and sticking to my rotating chalkboard quotes. It has always been a big stress reliever for me

Number 7: I am Handy

I know my way around all sorts of power tools as well as regular tools. I have fixed, built, and assembled several different things on my own, she don’t need no man! I’ve fixed things such as our espresso machines and even broken into a safe that’s key pad failed. I look at these issues and my response is always, “Challenge accepted!” I love knowing how things work and being able to fix them on my own.

Number 8: I Grew Up Using Firearms

Growing up in a small country town, everyone had guns of some kind. My Dad used to hunt and used to be a Police Officer. I was raised around them for the most part. As teenagers we would go out and shoot jack rabbits for fun. Along with the occasional coyote or badger. While I was going to college in Idaho I took Trap Shooting for college credit, it was considered PE. It was by far the best class I had ever taken. I finally decided to get my concealed last year and have a desire to get back into shooting like I used to.

Number 9: I am Fluent in Spanish and ASL

I grew up in a community with a large migrant population. My elementary school had an amazing program where we did half of our daily studies in English and then in Spanish. My schooling was entirely bilingual all the way into high school. On top of that, my Mom and my Grandma spoke Spanish too. I was able to be fully immersed in the language and to this day use it regularly.

I had the opportunity to study ASL (American Sign Language) while attending Boise State University. I was completely fluent by the end of the two years and I loved every bit of it. With the lack of usage, I will say I am pretty rusty. However, where I am working right now there is a school for the deaf and several of our customers are deaf. I get the opportunity to communicate with them. It is such an awesome experience when they first realize you can communicate with them in their own language.

Number 10: I Can Out Burp Most Men

Believe it or not, I have a condition where if I don’t burp I end up in the hospital… Don’t believe me? Ask my parents, they’ve paid the bills for it and they will tell you. In high school I would burp out in center field and it could be heard in the stands. If you’ve seen the movie “Elf” you probably remember the scene where he drinks the bottle of soda and then burps for a solid minute… That’s me in real life, I am not remotely exaggerating.

 

 

 

 

A Day In The Life

2018 In A Nutshell

Previously In The Life Of Erika

2018 was probably one of the most difficult year of my life, and yet I grew so much as a person. I don’t plan on going into much detail, but will try to be as transparent as I can be while respecting the other parties involved. In this day and age with social media, there is really an epidemic of “fake happiness” being portrayed. I am guilty of doing the same thing. I painted a very pretty picture of my life on all of my social media platforms, the truth is that behind closed doors it was not as pretty as I made it out to be…

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As my relationship began to crumble I was faced with the paralyzing fear of starting over and being alone for the first time in seven years. I got married very young, I was only 20 years old, and unfortunately people change and grow apart. We began our separation in April of last year and began divorce proceedings shortly there after.

Overall I have to say that 2018 almost broke me. I have never been so depressed, heartbroken, or lost as I had been throughout the majority of that year. My heart was shattered into what felt like a million pieces, I have never felt such heartbreak or pain before. I play it off like I’m a tough girl who never cries and can handle anything life throws at her. Keeping up with my current transparency levels, I cannot even count the number of times I cried while I was home alone, in my car, or in the shower. As I was adjusting to the new normal of not always having my son, I spent hours crying on the other side of the door after I handed him off to his dad.

I became so afraid of being alone that I would make plans to go out with old and new friends constantly. I refused to be alone with my thoughts and especially my feelings. Unlike most other females I know, I do not show my emotions and I hate when people see me cry. Instead I shove my emotions down into the depths of my soul, slap a smile on my face, and act like my life is perfectly fine. I fake it until I make it, but I have a dead giveaway I didn’t realize… I hold a lot of pain behind my eyes. If you take a second and look close enough, you’ll see it. All of the tears I was constantly holding back and all of the pain I tried so hard to bury.

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I make jokes and make light of my pain and my experiences, because that’s how I deal with things. I immersed myself in the gym, taking care of my son, and began rebuilding my life. I moved out of the home I shared with my husband in August, I was forced to rehome half of my furry family. Thankfully I was able to bring my Quinn Bear with me. To some people she may just be a dog, but to me she has always been my cuddle buddy and my shoulder to cry on. I honestly don’t know what I would do without her or my son, they were the only things that helped me make it through some of my darkest days last year. We started our new lives together with my roommates and started navigating our new normal.

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They say things come in threes… Heartbreak, divorce, and the third. Just when I thought my life was coming back together, things began to break all over again. I got a call from my Mom that I needed to go see my Grandma as soon as possible because she was not doing well. I went immediately and was able to spend the last few days with her. My Grandma Lupe was an incredible self made woman who had a huge impact on my life and was a big part of why I am the way I am. She raised my Mom to be a strong independent woman who could take care of herself, in turn my Mom raised me the same way. I am so grateful for the way these amazing women raised me, I don’t know where I would be if they hadn’t raised me in such a way.

My Grandma had been suffering from Alzheimer’s and Dementia for several years. Her battle came to an end on Christmas Eve of 2018. When I got the call I could hear the quiver in my Mom’s voice and I knew… I felt myself slide down the wall I had leaned against for support, I came to rest with my knees at my chest while whimpering “No Mama, no…” Hearing my Mom on the other side of the phone saying, “I’m sorry Mija, it’s going to be okay…” all through her own tears. After ending the phone call, the dam finally broke… All of the pain, heartache, and sadness I had been bottling up poured out of me while I sat alone. I cannot describe the amount of sorrow that poured out of me, I didn’t think it was even possible.

As we prepared to go back home, I continually told myself that I needed to keep it together. This was my time to be strong for my Sister and for my Mom, I needed to keep it together for them and be their shoulder to cry on. So I did what I always do, I shoved my feelings deep down and slapped my “I got this” face on. I wasn’t perfect in my eyes, I broke down at several points throughout the weekend. I had to be reminded that it was okay for me to not be okay on more than one occasion. It took constant convincing, but eventually I started listening.

2018 chewed me up, spit me out, and then stomped on me. 2019 is me getting back up, dusting myself off, and saying “You hit like a Bitch”. This is my comeback year and big things are happening y’all… Stay tuned!

A Day In The Life

Struggling to Communicate: Grayson’s Story

Previously In The Life Of Erika

I have taken a step back from this “blog life”, about 3 years to be honest. I have recently been encouraged to get back into it and share my life experiences. Whether it be motherhood, fitness, or even just daily life. So here we go!

*Let me preface this with the fact that I know there are worse things than a speech delay, this is simply our personal experience and struggle*

Most of my close family and friends know that my son has a speech delay. This is something that I never anticipated nor was prepared for as a first time mother. Nothing will ever compare to the feeling of hearing that something is wrong with your child. In any mother’s mind, I’m sure we all view our children as tiny perfect human beings. Even something as small as a speech delay was hard for me to hear. All I could think about was that I had failed as a mother, I did something wrong and this is all my fault.

I started teaching Grayson sign language when he was about six months old. The older he got the more signs I introduced to him and the more he learned how to communicate effectively through sign language. This was something I was extremely excited about and I was proud of how well he was doing with this form of communication at such a young age. As he grew and developed, his speech was just not there. He relied solely on his signs to communicate. After hearing from our pediatrician that there was cause for concern, I felt guilty about teaching him sign. It was put into my head that his delay was because I had taught him sign language, this turned out to be completely false accusations. Our pediatrician, speech therapists, and child psychologists we had seen all said that it was the best thing I could have ever done for my son. The overwhelming sense of relief each time I heard those words, was a God send for me. I needed to hear it, I needed to have that ingrained into my head that I did nothing wrong and this speech delay was not my fault.

Soon after these doctors visits, we began what would turn out to be months of speech therapy. So many tears were shed over the last year, from Grayson as he struggled and from me as a newly single mom trying to help my son in any way I could. Tantrums and uncontrollable outbursts were a fairly common occurrence for us. Watching and hearing people judge my child not knowing anything about our struggle behind closed doors was heart wrenching. I can’t tell you how many times we have cried together in public restrooms, in the car, and at home because of the frustration and inability to communicate effectively. I am extremely protective of my son regardless, but knowing he has an issue that people make fun of or look down on him for makes me even more protective. I experienced first hand someone taking a shot at my child and his delay. It was a low blow and I don’t think I’ve ever felt so much pure rage in my entire life.

This last month has been the most incredible month for his growth in communication. It seemed as though a switch flipped overnight. Out of nowhere he started coming up to me and asking for things. The most amazing thing however, was when he came up to me and said, “I woff you mommy” for the very first time. Tears welled up in my eyes and I completely fell apart. You never realize how you take such little things for granted, like hearing your child say I love you. To me it’s such a precious of a gift to hear my son say that.  It is becoming a norm now to hear him talking and especially hearing him say I love you. However, I have been doing my best not to take it for granted.

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A Day In The Life, DIY

Transforming a Hand-me-down

Previously In The Life Of Erika

Back when me moved into our new home my mom gave us several “hand-me-downs” from when my sister was a baby. My sister is six, so they’re all practically new and I don’t consider them “hand-me-downs”. One of these items was something I had been planning on DIY’ing for months… and months… and months…

Well I FINALLY got it done and I am so incredibly proud of it!

My mom handed down this storage shelf thing, whatever you want to call it is fine. I’m not well versed in the furniture/storage unit world, so shelf thing is the best I can do. When I first saw it, all I saw was the potential it had. All my husband saw however, was PINK. There was no way he was letting that go in our son’s carefully planned Seahawks themed nursery.

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Before!

Being who I am, I knew I could change it into something amazing that would fit well with Grayson’s nursery theme. If I’m being completely honest, this thing sat in the garage for several months. After finally bringing it in, it sat in my hallway for probably another month until I finally made the time to get it done!

I started out by painting the outside a fantastic Seahawk blue. It needed two coats of each color used. I got the paint from Lowes, all it took were one sample size of each color. I was pretty impressed with the coverage they had.

It started to look more and more like what I had envisioned it would be. I got even more excited as things started coming together. I painted the inside of each cube a wonderful Seahawk green color, to add a pop of color.

It had finally come together, and it was everything that I had hoped it would be! If I’m being completely honest… I totally had to finger paint the thin front pieces with the blue, my paint brush just didn’t cut it.

I am so happy with the final product, I really think it looks like a completely different piece of furniture/storage unit!!

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After!
A Day In The Life

Postpartum Depression? IT’S NORMAL

Previously In The Life Of Erika

My postpartum journey has been one filled with utter joy and happiness, while also harboring hidden depression. Many women suffer in silence and when they are unable to handle their suffering any longer decide to take their own life. I recently read an article about one such woman/mother. Reading that made me decide to share more about my own personal struggles with depression, especially postpartum depression, because it is normal and more common than you would expect. Postpartum depression or depression in general do not have to end in self harm or suicide, help is out there and seeking it does not make you weak or crazy.

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I remember going to my son’s well child check ups and filling out a survey about my own mental health to give to the doctor. My husband would look over my shoulder as I circled numbers without putting much thought into it. He would stop me over and over again as I went on, claiming that I was not okay and that I was experiencing these symptoms of depression more than I was admitting on the sheet. I would get so irritated and defensive when he would make these comments and sternly inform him that I was fine. Every time I was given the same sheet I filled it out the same way, and was forced to deal with the same responses from my husband.

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I have been married for four and a half years now and my husband has watched me battle depression off and on throughout the years. He knows my symptoms and he knows when I am not okay, but I will always go to battle with him to prove that I am okay even when I know I am not. I hate admitting that I am not okay, I hate admitting that I have sunk back into a depression, and I HATE admitting that I need help when it comes to my depression. Jordan always knows when something is not right with me, sometimes even before I do. He never makes me feel guilty for feeling these things, instead wants me to admit that I feel them and seek the help that I need.

Giving birth to my son was an incredible experience, one I wouldn’t trade for the world. The time that followed was supposed to be filled with only feelings of happiness, love, and bliss. Instead those wonderful feelings were mixed with intermittent feelings of sadness, disgust, and self loathing. I was stuck in this downward spiral… I was drowning and was ignoring every life preserver thrown my way by my loved ones, especially my husband’s.  I felt out of control in my life. I was stuck in a body I was unhappy with, I was stressed out, and I was exhausted all the time.

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I had always felt like my weight and health was something I could always control. Pregnancy and giving birth showed me otherwise. Throughout my entire pregnancy all I ever heard was how much weight people lost because they breastfed, and how fast they lost all of their baby weight. I was NOT one of those people. I was stuck at a weight I was miserably unhappy with and there was nothing I could do about it, I had again lost control. As strange as it may sound, my health and fitness is directly tied to my mental health and well being. When it came down to it, it was lose weight or breastfeed my child. There was no reason, other than my selfish desire to lose weight, not to continue breastfeeding. So I made the obvious choice.

For months I felt stuck and out of control in my weight and my life in general. Once my son basically cast me aside for real food, I was finally able to jump into taking care of myself physically and mentally. Loosing 27 pounds in about 4-5 months has done wonders for my mental state. I am in a much better and brighter place than I was in just a few months ago. I feel much more in control of my life and am so much happier. I am able to fully enjoy being a mom to the most wonderful boy in the world. It does get better my friends.

Stay happy! Stay healthy!

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A Day In The Life, Fitness

Traveling & Keeping on Track!

Previously In The Life Of Erika

Summer time is when most families are traveling and ours has been no exception. We have been to San Diego, Coeur d’Alene, and Maui this so far this summer. I know, I know that’s a lot of travel in a short amount of time with a baby. Those tips, tricks, and “how does she do it?” will be saved for another blog post! Getting back on topic… As most of you know I have been working on losing baby weight and getting back in shape, which is still going well, and the most important part is not letting myself get derailed while traveling with my little family.

Before I get too far into this topic, I want to give you a little background information. When I first started this journey 4 years ago I has ZERO self control when it came to eating out or attending events where food would be around, food I knew I shouldn’t be indulging in. I pretty much became a hermit, I had a horrible relationship with food. It gave me anxiety, made me depressed, and negative. Looking back, the amount of self control I’ve gained over the years amazes me. I am so proud of how far I have come! I now see food as fuel and do my best to make better choices when I do find myself eating out.

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I don’t know about you guys, but when I am traveling I find it hard to take a bunch of prepped food with me. A day or two sure, but 5 days worth of meals is A LOT! Instead I take ziplocks of my protein with me, grilled chicken (if I can), and completely prepped meals if I can. In situations where I find myself at a restaurant I look over the menu carefully and look for things that would be cleaner options. Now lets be real for a moment… When I look at a menu I really want the pasta or a cheeseburger, and it can be hard to go with something else. In those moments I reflect on why I eat the way I do and train the way I train. I have goals. Will that cheeseburger or pasta help me reach my goals? Probably not. Not to say that you should deprive yourself and never ever have food like that, I mean come on! We’re human, well at least I am… I will indulge in something like that when I have a refeed/free meal. Do I regret it? Absolutely NOT!

When eating out I typically order a meal with either chicken breast or sirloin steak, some form of steamed veggie, and a carb (potatoes or rice). Some people feel awkward about making special requests on their orders. In my opinion, you’re paying for it so get exactly what you want! Ask for your chicken without any sort of glaze, ask for steamed veggies not cheesy, ask for plain garlic mashed potatoes and not loaded, it’s okay! You’ll come to find that eating cleaner while eating out can still be satisfying and delicious. My favorite part about making those choices in food is that I am not bloated! The other nice thing is that I don’t feel like I’m going into a food coma after.

Making small choices daily can help you change your life and create a long term healthy lifestyle!

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Fitness

Postpartum Self Esteem

Previously In The Life Of Erika

Well I’ve truly been neglecting my blog, apologies to those who follow regularly! Anywho, I feel as though it is time that I open up and share about how I’ve been feeling and dealing with all of the changes I’ve been experiencing since giving birth. Seeing as it has been awhile I feel I should fill y’all in on what’s been happening before getting into the real topic of this post. Grayson is now just about 8 months old, weighs a whopping 20lbs, is a crawling and standing machine, has cut his first tooth, and now says “mama” constantly! Things have been great on the motherhood front, aside from lack of sleep of course.

Getting back on topic, I am now about 8 months postpartum and am the heaviest I have been in years. To add to that I am the most self conscious, uncomfortable, and disgusted with my body than I have been in years. I went from someone who was overweight, to someone who was physically fit and confident, to a pregnant woman, and finally to a new mom who absolutely hates her body. Even while I was pregnant I loved the changes and loved watching my belly grow, but the aftermath of birth was a different story. I was left with fat stores in places I never had excess fat before, cellulite, stretch marks, loose skin, and a complex.

I constantly talk negative about myself, make fat jokes about myself, and refer to myself as “Obese Denise” and “Flabby Abby”(yes, both are Pitch Perfect 2 references). I laugh and make light of my negative self talk, but underneath my mask I really believe and feel that way about myself. I look at pictures of myself and all I see is a massive tub of lard or a whale. I find myself full of self loathing and quite honestly pretty depressed. Depressed?? I have just been blessed with a wonderful child and a new home, how on earth could I be depressed?? It’s actually quite common and isn’t something to be ashamed of. I’m at a point now where I have realized that myself, and I have been doing things to change that. I have started getting serious about losing my baby weight, in fact I have lost 8lbs already! Yay me! I have some wonderful people in my life who constantly tell me how great I look after having a kid, or to remember that I just had a baby and to quit being so hard on myself (but that excuse now seems invalid to me anymore). Their words truly mean a lot to me, but for whatever reason I cannot seem to believe it.

I have what is called Body Dysmorphic Disorder, feel free to click on the link to learn more about it. This causes me to see things with my body that others don’t and obsess over them. I also tend to see myself as ugly or undesirable. I will sit and look at myself in the mirror and do nothing but tell myself how disgusting and fat I look. It’s not healthy. I am not opening up about this in order to receive attention, I am opening up about it because it is a common problem that most people don’t talk about. I want others who are going through the same thing to know that they are not alone. I know that I have this problem and I know several things I can do to assure I am working towards being happy with myself.

This last weekend we made a trip up to Coeur d’alene Idaho and spent time at Silverwood, an amazing amusement/water park. It was meant to be a fun weekend, but all I could think about was how I was going to cover my body up and how uncomfortable I knew I was going to feel. I went out and bought a new swim suit that covered my stomach and made sure to pack shorts to cover my self even more. As we were pulling up to the parking lot I knew these feelings were going to make this day miserable for me. I needed to do something. The walk to the park was about 20mins, this gave me even more time to ponder my feelings and emotions. I was still dreading the part of the day where we were going to be in the water… But then it hit me. Grayson is not going to remember my muffin top. He’s not going to remember my cellulite. What he’s going to remember are the wonderful times we’ve had. Yes I know he won’t remember this trip, but you get the picture. 😉

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Grayson and I this last weekend 🙂
A Day In The Life

Oregon Coast Trips

Previously In The Life Of Erika

It has really been a hot minute since I’ve created a blog post, apologies to those who actually want to keep up with them. Since starting my new job I’ve been crazy busy with work and being a new mom, so blogging has kind of taken a back seat at the moment. I found the time today though and decided to write a little bit about our recent trips to the Oregon Coast, yes I said trips… Two trips in two weeks. So much fun!

The first trip we made over to the coast was to Seaside, we went with our amazing friends(Andy & Andrea) and their little ones(Owen & Paige). We had not seen them since January, the last time we were back in Idaho, and it was so great to spend time with them. On our way over Grayson and Paige were sitting next to each other, Grayson was sound asleep and Paige was doing everything she could to stay awake. She started to play around and be silly, in doing so she dropped her shoe next to Grayson’s car seat. She tried to reach for it and couldn’t, in the CUTEST way she says,”Baby Grayson, would you please hand me my shoe?” Andrea and I looked at each other and started to giggle, it was so adorable! It was especially adorable because there is no way Grayson could’ve helped her out.

Once we arrived in Seaside we were on the hunt for some place to eat. We found this nice little restaurant and settled in. Grayson was done being restrained, after the long drive in his car seat and then going right into the stroller he wanted OUT! I sat him on my lap and he then began to sing us the songs of his people, he was as loud as could be and it was pretty funny. I swear between Grayson’s yelling, Owen and Paige giggling, and the adults trying to talk we were the loudest table in the place.

After eating we headed out to the beach, oddly enough it was a pretty gorgeous day. We walked all the way out to the water and watched the little ones play in the sand. We got a few good pictures and then it started to POUR down rain, as it normally does. We ran for cover, but pushing a stroller on the sand… Not as easy as one would think. By the time we got under cover I was soaking wet and it stopped raining. TYPICAL. We decided to hit the arcade and allow time to dry off, while having a little fun.

We decided it was time to head home when we discovered this mechanical shark in one of the shops downtown. I literally begged Jordan to go ride it, and after some coaxing and bribery he did. Oh my lord, it was HILARIOUS!!! The shark was super slick plastic, so it was really hard to stay on but he sure tried! I would post a video on here, but it won’t let me at the moment.

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The second trip we made was to Cannon Beach, for my father-in-law’s birthday. We did the same trip last year and it was great, I was excited to go back again. When we arrived our first stop was to Pig n’ Pancake for breakfast, it’s a great little breakfast joint. From there we went to the beach, again it was an abnormally gorgeous day for the Oregon Coast! Jordan forced his sister and I to go out there barefoot, and it was FREEZING cold water. We had a really cool encounter with a Bald Eagle. I had never seen one that close in the wild before. It hung out for awhile until I scared it away with my screaming… There was a channel running through the beach into the ocean, it looked pretty shallow so naturally Jordan decided to check it out and then tried to throw me in. I am such a lucky woman!

 

I got some really great shots of Haystack Rock and of my little family.

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Before we headed home we went to breakfast, and Jessica got a great shot of Grayson cheesing for the camera!

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Fitness

Meal Prep For The New/Busy Mom

Previously In The Life Of Erika

So I’ve come to the conclusion that I cannot meal prep in mass quantities. Right now I’m lucky if I get to eat enough times a day regardless of having prepped meals, and then the food spoils before I do get the chance to eat it. So a couple of weeks ago Jordan and I decided to hit up Costco for our latest grocery needs and I hit the mother load of meal prep essentials for the new/busy mom!!! I have switched from my fresh veggies and meats to the just as healthy but much more convenient frozen versions. Did you know that you can literally buy a 10 lb bag of frozen chicken breasts for $20 at Costco?? Overall I was paying more for the unfrozen chicken, and I could never remember to put it in the freezer before it would go bad so it was a total waste of money. Now I’ve got this massive bag in my freezer and I can easily pull out what I need in the morning and it’s thawed by the time I need it! I usually prep one breast at a time and it gives me enough meat for two meals. The greatest thing about it is that it will not go bad on me!!


When it comes to the veggies they also have massive bags of fresh frozen ones. I grabbed a giant bag of broccoli, green beans, and asparagus. The broccoli and green beans were only around $6 a bag, such a great deal!! Of course asparagus was more expensive, it always is no matter what but its amazing and so worth the $10 per bag at Costco. I’ve mainly been using the broccoli because I’ve been craving it all the time, for whatever reason. I was pleasantly surprised when I opened the giant bag, to find several smaller microwavable bags inside of it. Each smaller bag gives me enough veggies for about 3 meals or so and they taste SO fresh! They are never soggy or mushy, they always come out perfectly and it makes it so much easier than chopping up a giant crown of unfrozen broccoli by hand. Switching to frozen foods has cut my meal prep time in half!!

For my carbs I’ve basically stuck to white rice, yeah I know everyone always says use brown rice but I make white rice fit my macros and most of the time I prefer it. I throw it in the rice cooker while I’m either continuing to prep other food or playing with Grayson and it’s a no brainer, I measure it out when it’s done and I’m good to go! A new staple for me and a yummy way to get my fats in are these individually packaged cups of guacamole. I LOVE guac, it was my biggest craving when I was pregnant and it has just stuck with me since I guess! Anyway they are 80 calories per container and I don’t have to do any sort of measuring, I scoop it out into my rice and mix it in for some extra yummy flavor. Take my word for it, it’s BOMB!!

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Another new staple in my diet are Kodiak Cakes, pancake/waffle mix that is a great source of protein! It also feels like you’re getting a yummy cheat treat, while fitting your macros perfectly. Many people like to make their own protein pancakes from scratch, which is also great but I am not someone who has the time to do that most mornings. These are a quick and easy way to get a meal in and change things up from my usual eggs and oats. They are also delicious, my husband will tell you first hand because he pretty much eats them every morning too! Costco has them for a limited time, so stock up while you can!!

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I hope this post was helpful to some other moms who have been struggling to find some balance between taking care of themselves and their little ones! Happy prepping!!

A Day In The Life

The Struggle Is Real…

Previously In The Life Of Erika

Like most new moms I’ve been posting pictures of Grayson and status describing hilarious and precious moments, and like most moms I leave out the rough parts. Before becoming a mom I was under the impression that motherhood was pretty much sunshine and daisies, let me be completely honest with you… IT’S NOT. Not to say that I don’t enjoy being a mother because I do very much, but there is a whole other side I was not expecting. There’s the side that includes sleepless nights, cranky mom, short fuses, and just plain exhaustion.

I will be the first to admit that when I say short fuses I mean mine, and to be perfectly honest my fuse is so short I might as well not have one these days. I know it’s due to lack of sleep for the most part and I should practice patience, but I honestly can’t control it most of the time. Seriously, I lose my mind over the most trivial and pointless things. I hate it! I’m normally a very upbeat, happy, and nice person but these days I hardly recognize myself behind closed doors. I am mean and nasty when I lose it, and it happens more than I would like to admit. My husband takes the brunt of it every time, and he doesn’t always deserve it. He will be the first to admit there are times when he does, but there are also times where he definitely doesn’t.

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For example, this entire last week Grayson has been up almost every hour on the hour every night. Meaning so was I, and I still am exhausted and cranky. One of those nights I shouted at Jordan that I needed a break and he needed to get up and take care of Grayson, which he did while reminding me I didn’t have to shout and that he was happy to help out. In the moment that reminder only irritated me, and it had only been building over the last few days. Grayson was screaming and Jordan asked when he was last fed (thinking maybe he was hungry), and for whatever irrational reason I took that as I was willing to let him scream instead of feeding my supposedly starving child. In an angry huff I got up to take Grayson back and Jordan kept telling me that it was fine and he had it under control, all while avoiding my physical attempts to take Grayson. I am not proud to admit that at this point I went into a blind fit of rage and chucked a dirty diaper at Jordan’s crotchular area. Yeah I know, not cool and like I said I’m not proud of it but these moments happen. After coming to my senses I apologized profusely about my irrational overreaction. Jordan was only trying to do what I asked and attempting to help me, but exhaustion and my short fuse got the best of me that night.

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Another example that was not so aggressive, was just the other night where we were up all night long and I had reached my breaking point.  Again I asked Jordan for a break and this time I wasn’t really able to get one and I became frustrated. I handed our screaming child to my husband and I went out into the living room, still being able to hear his screaming and cried. I allowed myself to have a good hard cry before going back into our room and trying to be helpful in the moment. Obviously this was an example of how I would rather react in situations like these, but lets be real… We are not always rational.

After dealing with moments like these and ripping off my husband’s head over and over again, he asked me a question. One that he did not ask to upset or offend me but genuinely wanted to know the answer to. He asked me if after dealing with all of this if I would really ever want to do it again. I responded without hesitation that yes, I would do it again because I would know what to expect. After all of the sleepless nights, frustrations, fights, emotional blowouts, diaper blowouts, screaming fits, and mutual exhaustion it’s all worth it when I see his sweet little smile and remember how unconditionally I love my son. I am also so unbelievably in love with my incredible husband who not only has put up with my irrational anger, but has still loved me every step of the way. I couldn’t imagine my life without either of my boys!

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