{8 ways} to eat clean.

i love my sugar, and everything unhealthy. :) eating clean is by far one of the hardest things for me to do.  but it is one of the top few things that i absolutely wish i could do. i am by no means an expert on the topic. so i did a little research and found a few ways to help push me along.  hopefully these will help me (and you as well).

// cut down on sugar women should have 6 tablespoons, and men should have 9 tablespoons of sugar                                     per day.

// cut down on salt.

// cut down on saturated fats for example; whole milk, cheese, butter and meat.  instead; nuts,                                                              avocados, olive oil.

// cut down on refined grains (white flour, white rice)

// cut down on the processed foods

// have more fruits and vegetables, they're nutrient, low in calories and can help lower your risk of                                                                 heart disease.

// have more water to figure out how many (8 oz.) glasses of water you should have a day, take your                                   body weight divided by two then divide that number by eight.

// have more whole grains, such as; 100% whole-grain breads and tortillas.

as good as it gets...

before i got married, one of the things i was most excited about was having a place of my own to decorate, especially for the holidays.  when i actually did get married, i had this mind set {and still do} of, why decorate if this is not our permanent home? silly, right? well for halloween this year, this is as good as our decor will get. enjoy!

{ps... sorry for the horrible lighting}

general conference {let's get personal}

this past general conference weekend was perfect for me.  there were so many uplifting talks by so many inspiring leaders of our church.  and boy, did i need to hear all of the messages they shared.  it's not a secret that my life isn't perfect, and that i am not perfect.  it's obvious that i have made many, many bad mistakes in my life time. i'm going to get real personal.  in high school, i was involved with the wrong group of friends, and dated the same guy the entire three years who did nothing but bring me down. it started out slow, but by the time i reached the age of twenty one things had gone extremely down hill and i wasn't sure if i was going to be able to find my way back to what i have always truly believed. i would go to parties, and get involved in everything that i shouldn't have.  i did drugs so many times, i can't even count.  i would drink to the point of passing out every weekend.  things were bad, and the sad part was i knew what i was doing was very wrong.

i am so glad for the night that i called dave to come pick me up from the party i was at, from that night on i have changed and continue to change, thanks to dave. he has helped me in so many ways. i am me, again.  he makes me feel like i am worth something.  and i am so grateful that heavenly father brought him into my life. i am grateful for the gospel and for all of it's leaders and for the chance that all of us members have to come together every six months to be inspired by one another.  i'm looking forward to the day that i can be sealed for eternity to my little family-my amazing husband & best friend and to my perfect little olive and future children.

if you didn't have the chance to listen this past weekend or want to hear the messages again, visit here.

{life lately} welcome fall....

 

we're welcoming fall wether we like it or not... it's definitely here. 

we spent this conference weekend spending time together as a family, listening to the uplifting words from the leaders of the church.

october....

// pumpkin spice

// halloween

// changing leaves

// perfect temperatures 

// baby halloween costumes

// decorations

// trick-or-treating

// our first date anniversary

// the month we found out we were prego's

// general conference

// cuddling 

// carving pumpkins

// halloween parties

// can this month get any better?

we have a FOUR month old.

(she wanted nothing to do with me in these photos... all she cared about were her pants!)

time seriously is flying by, and i just need it to stop. my little baby who is not so little anymore is growing so big! olive turned 4 months old yesterday and i can't believe it.  i just want to squeeze her all day and never let her grow up.

although she is at such a fun stage right now, i am completely amazed every single day at how much she is learning! at four months old, olive.....

// weighs 11 pounds 11 ounces & is 24.1 inches long.  we have a tall and skinny babes!! she is in the 10th percentile for weight, 50th for length & 45th for head.

// she is a tough baby! today at her check up she had to get FOUR shots! :( olive didn't cry until the very last one and then we cuddled!! we still hate shot days though..

// olive is getting so much better at sleeping during the night... she still hasn't ever slept entirely through the night, but she can go 5-6 hours which is soo much nicer than what it was before.
   / we finally got her crib bumpers in the mail, which i feel like have really helped her sleeping. we also      went and got a little space heater for her room as well, and that has helped a ton. (her room was              freezing before!)

// boy, do we have a wiggle worm!! seriously though.  she can hardly stay still. and feedings are a struggle. she is thee most hyper baby while she drinks her bottle. it's like she feels like she's going to miss out on something if she stops to eat for 10 minutes. haha :)

// olive is super strong! she is super good at tummy time, loves loves loves to stand up/jump on your lap, she can now roll from her tummy to her back & can roll from her back to her tummy but still struggles getting her little arm out from underneath her belly.

// she is a huge story teller!! she talks SO much!!! i love her little voice!

// and every now and then she will laugh! ahh. it's to die for.  so far dave & dogs are the only ones that can get her to actually laugh.

// she loves her fingers. her long fingers. she is constantly putting them in her mouth and will sometimes gag herself! today we will be trying rice cereal for the first time when daddy gets home!

// she is really learning alot.  it's fun to watch her grab things and figure out how in the world she did that and how she's going to let go.

// she loves strawberry shortcake.  bright lights and music are her favorite.

// olive has reeeally fluffy, fuzzy, crazy long hair that is starting to get lighter and lighter. i wonder if she is going to be super blonde like mom or dark like dad?!

// and olive is finally into 3 month clothes!!!  i packed up all of her newborn clothes and put them away in storage over the weekend. :(

we seriously are in love with this little baby girl!! i am beyond grateful that she is in our lives!!

tummy time >>

tummy time.... it's not her favorite. but really, is it any new baby's favorite. not really. 

olive is pretty strong when she decides not to be lazy. 

most of the time, tummy time lasts about .2 seconds because she can roll onto her back.  she knows she's in control!! 

her latest thing is rolling ONTO her tummy. except she hasn't quite figured out how to get her arm out from underneath her belly. 

 i just love watching her learn.