Oh getting healthy.....

Well, since I am just in a waiting game with the Surrogate to get checked by the Doctor, I am dealing with my stress by going to Boxing class and getting healthy!  I was watching The Kris Jenner Show and she had Rocco Dispirito on and it inspired me to get his cookbook Now Eat This Diet book.  I tried this recipe for breakfast and it was AWESOME!!! 

Green Tea Watermelon Super Punch

As quoted from Rocco DiSpirito’s new cookbook Now Eat This! Diet:  “I CRAVE SMOOTHIES. I have 2 to 3 a day. Did I mention I’m forming a support group? This smoothie is one of my favorites. It’s souped up with high-antioxidant matcha (green tea powder). This one is made with yogurt, too—a wonderful probiotic food that has been shown in studies to help with fat burning. Oh, and if you suspect you’ve been unintentionally overdosing on smoothies, get help”.
Well when one reads that it is hard to not go make the smoothie!  Our Family LOVES watermelon, can’t get enough!  You all know how I feel about my matcha green tea, and my Greek yogurt so this smoothie seemed like the perfect cocktail!  Sure-fire hit!

 

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups ice
• 4 cups cubed seedless watermelon
• 1 cup nonfat Greek yogurt, such as 0% Fage Total
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice (I use almost fresh.  Try Nellie & Joe’s Famous Key West Lime Juice…it is awesome)
• ¼ cup agave nectar (I don’t think you need this.  Make, then add if you feel it needs to be sweeter)
• 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
• 4 teaspoons unsweetened matcha green tea powder

DIRECTIONS:

• Toss all ingredients into a blender and blend for 5 minutes to increase volume.
• Serve in glasses with a straw.

PER SERVING: (SERVES 4)
The 411: 176 calories 0g fat/0mg cholesterol/ 22mg sodium/37g carbohydrate/1g fiber/6g protein

My Retail Therapy Adventure with My Niece, Lily!

Well, after the day from hell yesterday I decided I needed a little retail therapy!  Nothing like Northpark to cue a bad day!  I love that place and the #1 reason I love living in Dallas.  Actually, it may be the ONLY reason I do!!  I had my little Sweet Pea Lily today, so it was perfect timing.  She LOVES to shop and was literally running to the garage door to get in the car and GO!!! 

Anyone who knows me, knows I LOVE clothes, shoes, Louis Vuitton purses and makeup so when I decided to quit my job I REALLY had a hard time with it because I knew I would have to be on more of a budget than I want to be.  Hey, you can't change a person and their ways.  Besides, I do recall my wedding vows in which My Husband said and I quote, "Happy Wife, happy life."  I was sure to have our Wedding Minister send me over our vows, so I can remind him of that!!  My Husband on the other hand is the tightest person I know and ALWAYS looking for the BEST deal, so I knew it would be hard not work my full time job and still keep up my lifestyle.  It will be an ongoing issue for sure in our house, but I am up for the challenge!! 

So, anyways off to the Mall Lily and I went.  I was actually going to Dillard's to return a wedding gift and exchange it for something else off of our registry. See, I had a valid reason for going!!  After I walked around Dillard's home department for what seems like forever saying to Lily the entire time, "Don't touch that", I finally figured out what I was going to get and then we worked our way to the sale racks of Dillard's workout clothes to get some more outfits for my Boxing Classes.  I believe you MUST look cute when doing any type of workout outside of the house!  The Lady at the cash register asked how old Lily was and I told her two and she was SO amazed at her vocabulary and thought she was way older than two.  If she only knew!!! 

After that, it was lunch time for Lily and it is NEVER a good idea to have a hungry kid at the mall, so off to La Madeleine we went.  I LOVE that place and rarely go there anymore since I worked at home the last three years and ate at home.  That was good for the pocketbook for sure!!  Lily was SO good at lunch.  She sat in her booster seat like a Little Lady eating her lunch and I was SO proud of her!! 

Lily was being SO good that I decided I wanted to go look for part of an outfit I saw on Pinterest that I MUST have!!  If you aren't on Pinterest, you are missing the boat!!  Love it!!!  It is a great way to pass the time away!  Ok, anyways, so Victoria's Secret was on the way to Loft and I needed some headbands to match my workout outfits, so we stopped in to pick some up and Lily INSISTED on carrying the bag around the mall.  One Lady even asked me what I could have possibly bought her from there.  It was kind of funny!!  Well, while on the way to Loft, Lily starts yelling, "The Easter Bunny, the Easter Bunny, LuLu's."  I see a brass Bunny in the air and knew we were going to have to stop!  Lily is OBSESSED with the Easter Bunny and any Bunny what so ever is The Easter Bunny.  She told me I had to take her picture with the Easter Bunny, so this is what I got because she was SO excited she wouldn't stay put!

She is SO beyond excited!!!

 

This is her picture with the actual Easter Bunny this past year.  I swear the kid has NO fear!!!

My Sister said she was so excited to see the Easter Bunny she fell down running so fast just to get to him!

 

After the fun of the "Easter Bunny", we finally made it to Loft to look for my outfit.  I didn't find anything that looked liked what I wanted, so we left and went to H&M.  I have FINALLY learned that store just is not meant for me and quickly left!  I KNEW J Crew would have what I wanted, so we went there.  Sure enough, they had EXACTLY what I was looking for along with a price tag I wasn't.  So, it was off to my go to store for this type of thing, Banana Republic.  After looking through the store, I saw something that just might work, so off to the dressing room we went.  Lily entertained herself with my headbands from Victoria's Secret while I decided on the size of my jacket that fit me the best.  It was quite a decision too!!  Here is a picture from Pinterest of the outfit I am OBSESSED with duplicating and REALLY looking forward to fall so I can wear it.

It's the outfit I love, not the watch and purse!!  I need to find the jeans next, but I want to wait until I loose some more weight from my Boxing classes.  I also need a boyfriend cut to pull off the rolling of the cuffs on the jeans.  Maybe my True Religion jeans will work though.  That is the jean type pictured.  I shall try those and save money too!!  YAY, my Husband will be SO happy!!  Here is the jacket I bought at Banana...

The jacket isn't exactly the look and color I wanted, but it was ON SALE for a steal of a deal, so I can make it work.  It is also 3/4 sleeved and VERY stretching, so I really like both of those things.  This is going to look SO cute with a white tee and rolled up True Religion jeans along with my heels.  I can't wait to wear my outfit.  BRING ON FALL!!!!! 

Well, after I found what I needed at the Mall, it was time to head home.  This is what happens to a kid after shopping with Aunt LuLu....

Love her SO much!!!  She was a TROOPER!!!

 

One of those days!!

Today has been a VERY challenging day for me.  I am starting to feel VERY overwhelmed with ALL the things going on in my life.  I really thought when I left my job, I would have WAY more time on my hands, but I was WRONG WRONG WRONG!!!  It seems that I am busier than when I was working my full time job.  I guess it is a good thing to pass the time by fast though.  I am trying to have some me time by going to boxing class.  Let me tell you, it is definitely a good way to take out pent up frustration for sure.  I kind of look forward to my classes and find that I don't have as good of days when I don't go to a class.  I want to work my way to a KILLER body!!  I think it is going to do the trick!  Well, anyways, back to my horrible day.....

It all started when the dogs decided they needed to go out at 1am this morning.  I KNEW it was going to be a bad day from that moment on!  I figured I better get up with them so the Husband could sleep since I don't have to go to work anymore.  So, not getting enough sleep and thinking about all the things I need to get done was just too much to handle today.  I THINK we just might have the contract for the Surrogacy ready to sign.  MIRACLE!!  Who knew a contract could be so full of literal nonsense.  :-)  It really amazes me that so much stuff has to be put into a contract because of people that aren't honest.  I guess I just can't understand why anyone would take advantage of someone who is helping two people out with the miracle of a child.  I don't think I can ever wrap my brain around horrible advantage takers.  Anyways, 29 pages later, we have all the legalities set for us and the Person that will carry our sweet little Baby.  It feels like it has only take 100 years to get this thing going and I am VERY thankful it is completed for the most part.  We just need the signatures of all Parties, but first the Surrogate needs to get checked out my the Reproductive Endocrinologist. 

Well, that is another story in itself since she actually did that yesterday only to be told to come back when she got her cycle.  UUUUUGGGHHHHH!!!!  Such a waste of her time.  Why didn't they just tell her that from the beginning when she asked them if she needed to be???  HELLO PEOPLE!!!!!!  So, we will just wait until that day and go from there.  Let the waiting begin.

Onto the other stressful part of my life is the need to find a lot to build our house ASAP!!  I have been dealing with a Builder on a lot that he has in our desired Neighborhood, but the back and forth with him is RIDICULOUS!!  He of course tells us in the beginning he will sale us the lot I want only to later tell us he won't unless HE gets to build the house.  So, we are negotiating his ASTONOMICAL fee to just over see the project.  I just keep trying to get him to understand the urgency in the situation, but I don't think he gets it.  In the mean time, I will just keep editing the floor plan for the house which is a nightmare in itself. 

I guess that is all for now.  I think it is time for wine! 

Exciting times

It is so amazing how fast we are moving along with the surrogate process.  We are pretty close to getting a contract in place and getting our surrogate checked out by the Reproductive Endocrinologist.  We are working with a GREAT IVF Clinic.  Their office staff is SUPER nice and to me that is extremely important.  I have dealt with so many rude people at Doctor office's in the past and don't want that to be the case in such an exciting process.  In the mean time of getting all the details of the contract for us and the Surrogate signed, I am doing research on OBGYN's and Hospitals as we are paying cash.  It is INSANE the mark up that I have found when using insurance versus cash.  Cash is a WAY better option, so that is a positive thing in such an UBER expensive process. 

It is pretty funny that people are asking us if we have Baby names picked out yet since we don't even have a pregnancy.  But, anyone who knows me well enough knows that I am a planner and of course have Baby names picked out, but I am not sharing them with anyone.  I am barely telling Jason because I know he will let it slip and I don't want anyone stealing my Baby names.  Who would have ever thought you had to worry about these types of thing??  I will, however share the initials of a possible Baby Boy, RRR.  No, RRR is not a typo.  That will be the initials of a Baby Boy, but I know for a fact no one will ever guess the name.  I am still in limbo of a Girl's name.  I think it will be BRR.  I know the middle name for sure, but the first name is still in debate in my head.  Once we do have a Baby and know the sex, I will share the name at some point because I know I can't keep that a secret until the due date. 

It seems like I am in dream right now just talking about this stuff because I NEVER in a million years thought this would be a reality.  I am already starting to lose sleep over the worry that something will happen, but I know I am just protecting my heart from a possible break. 

Well, onto another exciting topic...

I think that we might have found the lot to build our new house on.  I sure hope this is the one because it an exhausting ordeal trying to get something that we actually like and not just settle for.   The thing I hate most about living in Dallas is how close the houses are to each other.  I mean seriously, you can touch the house next to you.  But, we will hopefully be in a safer neighborhood with streets to walk down without drunk drivers drive home from the bar next to you like we currently deal with living on Henderson.  So, I am looking forward to having real neighbors for our future kids to play with like I had as a kid.  That was one of the best memories of my childhood.  I loved  just playing with my friends all summer long and on weekends.  Lots of great memories that I want for my own children. 

Getting this lot now will be perfect timing to insure that we will be in a new house by the time we have a Baby.  Hopefully, it will only take six to eight months to build our house and get moved in and ready for Baby R.  The last thing I want to be doing is moving with a newborn.  UUUUUGGGGHHH!!!!!

So, the last thing that is changing in my life, is my job.  It has been SO great getting to work from home and it was a VERY hard decision to make, but I am leaving my job as of next week.  I can't wait to have the time to get the house plans done, meet with Builders and contractors plus all the appointments for Baby.  It will be such a relief to not worry about the hours I would have to be away from work to do the things that need to be done for the house and Baby.  I am VERY lucky to have a Husband that is able to make this all happen.  He is truly the BEST HUSBAND EVER!!!! 

I think that covers all the exciting things going on in my life for now.  Until next time!

The Meeting

I am in a complete state of SHOCK right now!!!  I don't even think it is real, yet.  So surreal!!

So, the dream of being a Mommy is starting to take shape in a BIG way!!  Last Saturday, July 6, 2013, I went to Corner Bakery and met with a potential surrogate and my friend that put us in touch.  We talked for quite a long time and I felt that things were going very well.  At the end of the meeting, she told me that she was also in talks with another potential family.  My heart sank, but I knew that everything would work out the way it was supposed to, so I just stressed for the next few days in my own little way, which meant I did not sleep very much at all and survived on coffee.  That is the worry side of me!  But, by mid week, I was in contact with her and we were scheduling dinner so our Husbands could meet as well as her two boys.  Tonight, July 12, 2013, we met at 7:00pm at Joe's Crab Shack for dinner and talked for a couple hours and just had casual conversation.  It was really laid back and comforting.  At the end of the dinner, they told us that they had been speaking to another Family and decided they were just not the fit for them and had decided that God had led them to chose us.  I was just STUNNED, because I really just did not know what they felt was best for them.  As I sit here and type this post, I still can't believe it and SO excited for this Journey!!   Looking forward to the next year with this selfless Family!! 

The Maids

I never did a post about my Bridesmaids for the wedding.  I wanted to pick the ones in my life that had a positive influence on me and who's values were ones I admired.  So, I chose my Sister, Denise and my Sister in Law, Erin.  I love these girls both very much in very different ways.  My Sister is someone that I pretty much talk to everyday and have a HUGE bond with that goes deeper than just blood.  I can always count on her to be there for me to vent to or just have a good laugh with.  Either way, we have had great times and bad, but it is more of the great times I remember.  Erin is someone that is new to my life by marriage and I am very glad to have her in this big family I have become a part of.  I am very excited to have a closer relationship with her over the years to come. 

For the day of the wedding, I wanted the day to be fun and casual.  We started with breakfast at French Blue, which was such a cool place.  I want to go back with My Husband as soon as we go back to Napa.  After breakfast, we went back to the Hotel to get ready for MY BIG DAY!!!  YAY!!!!  We had champagne and had our hair and makeup done.  I really wanted to pamper both of them for ALL they did for me leading up to the wedding and what they will share with me years down the road.  I wanted them to know how much they meant to me and how appreciative I was for them standing up with me.  It truly was special and I will always cherish the time we had that day getting ready and just being Girls!!  The wraps were from a website called www.ivorysparrow.com and I am telling you right now, if you don't have one of these wraps, you are MISSING OUT!!!  They are amazingly soft!  I wear my everyday while getting ready for the day. 

My Princess Buttercup

Anyone who knows me well, knows how much I LOVE my niece, Lily Grace.  I am missing her as she is in London right now and this will be the longest I have EVER gone without seeing her since the day she was born, so I thought I would do a blog all about My Princess Buttercup (the name I call her).  My Sister waited a long time to have a child, so when I found out she was having a baby I was a little sad because it wasn't me, but I was SO happy for her.  Once she and her Husband found out they were having a girl, my Sister knew that Grace had to be somewhere in the name so we would text back and forth with names that would sound good.  I text her, Lily Grace and she said, no that she was afraid that kids would call her Lily Pad or Lily Licker and she did not want her being made fun of for her name.  I told her that kids could make fun of any name and it really didn't matter what the name was.  So, she told her Husband that I came up with Lily Grace and he really liked it.  So, the next day she called me and said that he told her if I really liked that name, they would let me name their baby.  So, Lily Grace became the name.  I cry just typing that story because it was really selfless of both My Sister and her Husband to let me name their first baby together!  I also ended up moving in with them shortly after Lily was born to help take care of Lily Grace, so I got to spend every single day with her.