KonMarie Declutter series: My clothes

Okay this was the hardest section to get done!! I needed to wash all my clothes and have them in one place. So after weeks of washing and rewashing I finally all my clothes in one place!!! And it was a shock to see how much I really own!! And I only wear a small portion of it. Well I wore some just because they were clean and comfy but they didn't even fit. So here is where we began!!!

Yes here was totes of clothes, shelves of clothes, and hangers full of clothes...oh lord and to think I got rid of a bunch before we move here. Idk where all the clothes comes from.

Here is after the first round of pulling out stuff I don't wear, use, or fit into.

Sell stuff

Donate stuff

Keep stuff

Then I hung everything up and did another pull out of stuff that doesn't bring me joy any longer.

Everything I am donating!! 

Everything I am keeping!!!

I also did my underwear drawers, and this one shocked me. I knew I had lots of underwear as it filled two drawers, but seeing them all in one place made me realize it was time to get rid of stuff!!

Before

Keeping

Going!!!

I feel so good after this Declutter it may seem like I don't have much left, but everything I have I could grab today and wear and be happy in it!!!

Breastfeeding adventures part 4

I can't believe I am already starting to write this, because that means we are pretty much done with this adventure :( and that makes me really sad!! Breastfeeding to me is the most special form of bonding!!!

I nursed both kids until 1 year and they both self weened because they liked whole milk and how fast it came out!! Bittersweet, but even tho I miss our special cuddle time, I do enjoy having my body back and knowing I can sleep in any day without having to get up and nurse first. 

Darren latched right away without problem. He was nursing from day one like it was no problem. And we had no problems the entire journey that is until 10 months. He had recently started getting teeth and at first I associated the nipple pain I was getting to him having new teeth and his latch changing. It took me a couple weeks until the pain literally wasn't bareable, to realize something was a little off. He didn't seem to be bothered but I was having to count down from 10 to get through each nursing session and changing positions...it was so painful. That was about when I noticed a little bit of white on his cheek.

Thrush!! I knew it right away, never thought we would get it. I always thought thrush was something that tiny babies got, and had no idea that at 10 months we could still get it. So we headed to Urgent care to get some Meds. We were on Meds for 4 weeks. The stuff didn't seem to be working. One of us would get it cleared up and the other would still have it and it would come back to the other one. At this point we were already at 11 weeks. The pain was still out of control. Finally I started giving Darren whole milk once a day so I could catch a break with one less nursing session. And that was the catch. It helped so much and we finally cleared up thrush completely. 

However, he had already gotten his taste of milk. And it didn't take long for us to be down to just once in the morning and once before bed. At that point I wanted him to want to nurse those times, I wanted to keep our little bit of quiet time. But by the time he turned one he only wanted to nurse before bed to help him get sleepy. I was so sad, but was gonna let him go at that for as log as he needed it. But within a week or two he was done. He self weaned and we are both okay with that. We did try to relactate when he got sick, and was miserable. But he just kept pushing the boob away. 

Extended feeding isn't for us, we both like our independence and that is great, but he still comes to me for cuddles and loving and that works for me!!!

Resolutions 2016 and 2015 review

Wow, I am so very sure that each year goes by faster and faster, and each year I'm busier too!! December sure went out with a bang and really has me thinking. I love to sit down and set goals and plan out my year so I know I am always moving forward and upward!! I swear I get more ambitious each year! 

With that being said let's take a quick review of last years resolutions, and see where we are now...

Give Birth to a Happy Healthy baby Boy. At 11 lbs I would say that mission was accomplished!

Blog 3x a week: I will admit this one slowly dwindled towards the end of the year when we went on vacation for a month, and then got back and life got hectic!!

Get back in Shape. Now I am not a fitness model, but I feel much more comfortable in my skin then I did this time last year!! And that makes me happy!!

Move and settle into Texas. Took a while, but I really like all the new friends I am making, and have finally got my Photography really going strong now!! 

Do 24 shoots. This one has been accomplished with 28 sessions this year!! Which is phenomenal considering I only worked like 6 months!! Feeling very proud of this!!

Have a substantial Savings by December. With an international move, and tons of other unexpected purchases this one unfortunately is not where we want it to be!

52 week Challenge. I quit the one I had started early into the year, just had too much going on with a new born and a big move.

Get organized and declutter. As usual this one is always on my list and each year I get something else organized to a point it stays that way....but I have yet to figure out the solution to the whole house....here is to next year lol!!

2015 has been quite the year for our little squad!! We finally got to meet Darren and have fallen madly in love!! We moved across the entire world!! And I got Moment in Paradise photography turned into an official business!! Although I didn't fully accomplish all my resolutions I am very happy with what got done considering the big changes we have dealt with!! 

So as usual my list is long and outrageous!! And who knows what the year will bring with it, but here's to hoping these will be easy to complete!!

24 sessions.

Fix financial situation.

Keep up fitness routine.

KonMarie Method.

Read 12 books.

Get good grades.

Keep up with Blogs, and YouTube. And provide some new content.

Do a catch up day once a month.

Stay tuned for updates as the year progresses!! Hopefully it will be a successful year!!

The first week of December

Monday: Today we had a very super exciteing day our friends the Cordell's were passing through while visiting friends we got to meet them for some play time and lunch!! It was so much fun to see them and  although it has been a year we picked back up like it had just been yesterday!! I look forward to the fact they may be living near by pretty soon!!

Tuesday: We spent about an hour at a play date with new friends!! It was so cute to see Darren playing with other kids his age!! After that we spent most the day, just playing with the pups!

Wednesday: Okay so it's been a very lazy week, more time has been spent doing nothing, then productive stuff. Our washing machine is in the fritz, but hopefully I can get it to work today!

Thursday: Mommy got everything set up for her studio and made the kids model!! And I have to say this little bandana we got from our new friends is too cute. I am going to buy more!! Also going to work with Victoria do a photo shoot and help her get more clients in the door!!

Friday: It has been a long week and we finished it off with cuddles and a drink!!

 

Saturday & Sunday: We had a pretty uneventful weekend. We did manage to go see Olaf, and run to Target. Oh and we went geocaching, that was fun!! 

The one I finally got fully back in my routine

Monday: Okay so vacation kind of made it hard for me to keep up with these blogs like I had wanted to, so after the first week I decided I would just post the rest of the pictures in one big blog probably sometime this week. And then the first week back was crazy with Dustin in the field and me alone with the kids so that week just was kind of a blur. But in the end we are finally pretty much back in a more regular routine. I swear every year our lives get busier and busier it's crazy. And this year is almost coming to an end already. So Today really wasn't very eventful...the kids and I stayed home and hung out all day. And after bedtime Dustin and I did our first weight lifting routine and it was hard but awesome!! I love new workouts and being sore!!

Tuesday: Even tho I started today out without coffee, ugh and was really grumpy, mostly cuz Kyra was sick and I didn't have enough energy to deal with it. But after she threw up a couple times she was feeling better and the day started to shape up. Kyra and I decided to take on the day and cleaned and decluttered her room!! It was time to get it done before Christmas presents next month!! After the kids were in bed I went to a movie with my friend Natalie with the money I won't at Bunco this month!!

Wednesday: Still no coffee today, I need to grind the beans and just don't feel like doing it right now lol. I managed to get my chores done, and also cleaned Darren's room which isn't hard, but I did actually clean the toy storage my neighbor gave us which was a project in its self!! After lunch I finished cleaning the rest of the house!! Once the kids were in bed Dustin and I prepped all our dishes and made a homemade pie!! It is ugly but it tasted awesome!! Gonna have to make more pies now that we have a good crust recipe!!! And a pie pan!

Thursday: It's thanksgiving, we left pretty early this morning and headed to Doug and Ambers house in Dallas. I have gotten terrible about taking pictures when I should, but later if Amber posts them, she took a few pictures of the kids eating!! It was such good food, and amazing company. It had been 6 years since our last thanksgiving with family. It has always been just us or our military family!! After dinner we watched movies and listened to the kids tell bedtime stories. Kyra and Hannah (who are literally two peas in a pod) wanted to have a sleep over an were up past 10 before we gave up and split them up so they would actually get some sleep.

Friday: We got up and headed out around 9:30 so we wouldn't be in their hair too long, and so we could get out I case we hit traffic which always seems to happen. But we managed to not hit any on he way home it was smooth sailing for a change. I guess people just wanted to sit at home and be fat!! Once we got home we stayed in all night and just kept warm on yet another soggy day.

Saturday: After what felt like the longest two weeks because we were broke we finally got paid so we could buy groceries, a Christmas tree, and a dog. Oh yeah we adopted a doggy!! Shade needed a friend, and Darren needed his own doggy too!! After many trips to the shelter we finally found a perfect match. After we picked her out we came home to introduce her to Shade. It actually went very smoothly. And by the end of the day they were playing all night. Oh and we finally decided on a name, Freyja.

Sunday: We decided maybe the new dog needed some things of her own so we ran to the store to stock up on doggy stuff. We may be officially broke again but at least we are a complete family and everyone is happy.

Darren is 10 months

Nicknames: Dare Bear, Darren McBarren

Clothing Size: 24/2t

Personality: You are a trouble maker, and get into every thing and leave distruction everywhere you go.

Things I Could Do Without: You throwing food on the floor to feed the dog.

Item/Toy We Love The Most: New high chair so you can eat with us and strap you down while I try to cook.

Item/Toy You Love The Most: Crocodile with blocks, and Moose!

Things I’m Loving Most Right Now: When you and Kyra disappear to one of your rooms and play quietly together.

Things You’re Loving Most Right Now: Being able to reach a lot of new things including the table top to grab down things you think you want!!

The one with an old friend reunion

Monday: Today was all about cleaning. I cleaned almost the entire house!! I hate leaving for a big trip with the house a mess!! So by bedtime tomorrow I will have a super clean house then the goal will be to keep it that way until we leave!! Shouldn't be too hard...but still gotta do some shopping, and packing before the long road trip!! 

Did my legs workout today, two weeks ago I did this same workout and thought I was going to die for real!! But today it was so much easier!! Getting stronger!! 

Tuesday: More cleaning today!! It's getting close to being done, all the tedious chores: dishes, laundry, trash etc are done. Just need to pick up the dining room table, the office, the kids rooms, and the bathrooms. Our room will have to be a project for after the trip, just too much to do in there and I don't have the desire to do it! Dustin claims he is going to help, we shall see. 

After dinner we headed out to the park to do our usual laps, and hopefully Darren will be in a good mood!! 

Wednesday: Today has been a super productive day and it's only 1. I woke up in a very inspired mood and made pancakes, eggs, and bacon!! It was awesome, if you know me I don't really do breakfast, I always end up messing up pancakes but somehow I made perfect ones today and was very impressed!! After breakfast the kids and I got dressed and ran errands to hobby lobby, dollar tree and target to get everything we needed for the long trip Friday!! Afterwards we rushed home so we would be here for lunch with Dustin who didn't end up showing up :( so we took naps, and finished house cleaning!! I am going to pack what I can after my workout and dinner tonight!!

Dinner was so amazing, it's awesome having friends who are so true that after years you can still pick up where you left off like nothing has ever happened. We really miss seeing Kyle all the time, but hopefully we will see him again soon!!

Thursday: We started the morning out with Kyra being sick so we have of course the night before the long trip been up since 4 am but no worries we will do great!!

We met up with Christa and the kids while the car got an oil change, so we could see them one more time before out trip!! We are getting so excited!

Got all the packing and cleaning done quickly!! Only a nap away from our trip!! The drive may be long and we may not get much sleep, but it's just as bad as the long flights from Germany were so I know we will survive!!

Friday: Okay so I am writing this Sunday morning so let's just say it took that long to recover. After being up since 4am Thursday morning with Kyra Dustin and I had intentions of going to bed a couple hours before midnight so we could have some sleep before we left. That idea was a failure so we finished loading the car and headed out without any sleep.

Less than 30 mins into the drive we started seeing deer, and lots of them. We literally saw over 100 in like 2 hours. So by the time we rolled into Lubbock after driving for 6 hours already we were exhausted and starving so we found an IHOP to grab some breakfast at!! During breakfast the sun started to come up and we got some good coffee, and we're ready to go for about another hour or two, just long enough to get to Amarillo by morning!! Haha!!

Dustin was exhausted, so he napped while I peed, walked the dog, nursed the baby and chilled so he could nap. After nap we ate at McDonald's before venturing onto the second half of the trip. After Amarillo all we wanted was to get out of Texas...I couldn't believe we had already been traveling around 12 hours and we're still in Texas. Finally we reached the border and went running into New Mexico!!

I ended up driving a lot of the way across New Mexico because Dustin was just too tired to go any further, so he napped again while I drove across New Mexico and into Colorado. Once we reached Trinidad the last 2 hours to My Grandmas house was an easy drive and we rolled into town just in time for dinner as planned. It was a long drive but I am so proud we stayed on track time wise the whole time.

We ate dinner and chatted a while before we couldn't possibly keep our eyes open another moment and passed out at the hotel!

Saturday: We got up way too early due to early bed, and the time difference. So the kids and I had A quick snack like breakfast and ended up falling back asleep a little while!! When we got back up we headed back over to Grandmas to have breakfast and went down to the river to play. Shade was scared of the water, and Kyra almost fell in, but it was fun!!

After lunch we headed out to Kami and Justin's!! We hit a little traffic but I was happy to have navigated to heir house no gps!! Kyra and the boys were so excited to play all evening!!

Sunday: We are heading to the park to play and picnic!! This morning before heading to see Beth and Dan!!