Rocking Motherhood Challenge

Motherhood is crazy roller-coaster that is unique and amazing everyday, even with its moments of anxiety from the crazy momentum and scary turns that you never saw coming. I consider motherhood the biggest blessing to ever been given to me. I look back at my life and cringe with some of the crazy and nonsensical things I have done. Becoming a mom was the the absolute best thing that has ever happened to me. I have two beautiful little boys that know how to make the me the happiest woman on Earth but can also push me to the edge of insanity with a moments notice. Although there are times when I honestly have no clue what I am doing, I know that I am rocking motherhood in my own special little way. I have embraced the roller coaster ride and am excited to see what lies around the bend.

I was tagged by Hannah over at Lovely Little Lives to participate in the 10 Ways I'm Rocking Motherhood Challenge. Thank you Hannah for giving me the opportunity to look at motherhood through a positive perspective. You can check out her post in the link above and you can continue reading to see how I am rocking motherhood below:

I am a fighter.

 

Through my past ten years as a mommy I have had to battle many demons that I never imagined. I fought my way out of an abusive marriage. It took four long years but we all survived. I have fought with back pain for longer than I can remember. I fight depression and anxiety everyday. No matter what happens, I will continue to fight. My God is larger than anything that can come against me and my family and I want my children to know this from my example. I also want them to know that I am always in their corner just waiting for when they need me.

I am Patient. 

Little man is almost ten years old now, extremely intelligent and likes to act older than his age. Goalie is developmentally delayed and struggles with emotions, socializing and education. They are opposites in so many ways and sometimes it is hard to parent children that are so different. God has blessed me with a great deal of patience (most days) and I think that it helps me to be a better mom and wife. 

I cook home-made dinners almost every night. 

I really enjoy having a hot dinner ready for my family because it is one way that I like to show I care. It is also fun to make new recipes and have my boys help me cook. Creating healthy habits is important and the family time that comes with a hot dinner together doesn't get much better. There are some nights that I would rather pick up some takeout but it would create a completely different atmosphere in my home. These dinners are anticipated and loved by the entire family. 

I will NEVER allow my boys to quit. 

Dedication is an important character trait that I hope my children grasp with both hands. We discuss every extracurricular activity and sport prior to us registering or joining because there is always the understanding that we will be making a commitment that will not be broken. Cub Scouts, Soccer, Football, Boys on the Run and 100 Mile Club. These are all activities that my kids participate and they know they are expected to be a reliable team player. They will show up to practices and games and they will always be good sports, whether they win or lose. I am proud to say that they both have received awards for being a "Christ-like" player.

I am crafty. 

I have thrown together turkey shifts and ugly sweaters. I have crafted saint costumes from curtains, pillow cases and eyeliner. I am proud to say that last minute projects are one of those things I happen to excel.Taking the time and effort to make crafts and personalized items makes my boys feel special and I love to do it. I enjoy doing arts and crafts with the boys, in fact, we have coloring nights all the time! We pick out a movie, make some snacks and pull out all the crayons, colored pencils, markers and paper. We push play and it's a coloring-fest for the next few hours.

I am organized, at least I try to be organized. 

I utilize a planner, Cozi and bullet journal. With all the craziness that life throws at us schedule wise, I make it happen. Everyone knows the plan for the day each day and upcoming plans for the week. 

I am teaching them to be good Catholics.

This is the most important thing that I can do for my children. Dressing them in their Sunday Best every Sunday for Mass, teaching them the Commandments, Beatitudes, Acts of Mercy and following the Golden Rule. These are things that I am teaching them in their everyday life through examples and correcting them when they stray off the path of righteousness. 

I am a volunteer.

I volunteer to help at school functions, at our church, Cub Scouts and the kids' extracurricular activities. I want my children to have me by their sides and able to be a full participant in their achievements. This can sometimes be difficult since I work but I try my best and offer up the difficult times up to God.

Tag- You're it!

I am challenging these bloggers to join me in the #RockingMotherhood Challenge! Check them out!

Alicia from Sweeping Up Joy

Ginny from Not So Formulaic

Anni from Beautiful, Camouflaged Mess of a Life

Allison from Reconciled to You

Transform Your Life Thursday Challenge

Normally on Thursdays I participate in an amazing linkup called {pretty, happy, funny, real}. I learned today that the linkup may be discontinued, which makes me a little sad but I understand the importance of having a balance within your life and I am sure that hosting linkups on a weekly basis can take up a lot of time. I loved having a day to sit and contemplate the blessings I received everyday through my friends, family and experiences. The realization that there may not be anymore {pretty, happy, funny, real} made me rethink what I wanted to share today. 

I am a planner. I like to have my workouts, meals, prayer time and anything else important written down so I am accountable and don't make the mistake of overbooking my day. I honestly believe that you have to plan to succeed, otherwise you are planning to fail. Let's make us all accountable for our goals. I am challenging myself and anyone else who would like to join me in a Transform Your Life Thursday Challenge. I might even turn this into a linkup if I have enough interest. I am working on some printable now. For now let's discuss the rules so that this can be used as a tool for you to reach the life you want.

Rules for Transform Your Life Thursday:

1. Set Short Term Goals

Pick one area of your life you would like to transform. I suggest picking one because you do not want to overwhelm yourself and as time progresses you can make other goals. Here are a few suggestions:

Faith: Weekly/Daily Mass, Prayer Journal, Daily Prayers, Etc.

Family: Daily Dinner, Weekly Outings, Game Nights, Etc. 

Fitness: Meals, Completing Workouts, Measurements, Before/After Pictures Etc.

Financial: Savings Plan, Credit Card/ Bill Repayment, Vacation Fund Etc.

**You don't have to share these unless you want to; Goals are important but can be very personal.**

2. Create A Plan

What are you changing in your everyday life to make progress?

How are you going to bridge the gap between meeting goals?

How will you keep yourself accountable?

What do you need to succeed?

Do you need help?

3. Follow Through Each Week

Stick to your Faith, Family, Fitness, Financial Plans.

Do not be discouraged if you have a bad day or don't reach your goals right away. 

Everyday is a new day and a fresh start! If you keep trying, you will reach your goals.

If part of your process isn't working, try something else until you find what works for you.

4. Start Your Plan This Upcoming Monday

Planning for the future gives you time to gather what you need to be successful: prayer journal, planner, healthy recipes, a piggy bank or whatever you need to succeed and you have the entire weekend to be productive and get ready!

Write everything down in your planner, journal or in a place that you can reference often.

It has been proven that if you keep your goals within eyesight, it will help you overcome obstacles that can slow your progress. 

5. Celebrate Your Success

You deserve a reward when you reach a goal! Find something to reward yourself with at the end of your challenge and be accountable; if you don't stay consistent, wait on rewarding yourself.

My goal for this Transform Your Life Thursday Challenge is to be consistent with my workouts. 

I will go to the gym at least 4 times this upcoming week.

I will weight lift each visit to the gym.

I will run at least 2 miles each workout and must be added to Nike Plus.

I will take pictures at the end of each workout to hold myself accountable.

When I reach my goal, my reward will be a yummy dessert of my choosing!

Next week I will post about my progress and whether I succeeded in reaching my goal. If I was unsuccessful I will repeat my same goal. I will choose another goal next week (only if I am successful) and follow the same process. I would suggest picking a new goal from a different aspect of your life. I know this process will create a healthy routine and help me transform my life one Thursday at a time. I would really love some feedback and see who wants to be a part of Transform Your Life Thursday Challenge. If you want to share your goals or anything please add them in the comments and I will see about a linkup!

God Bless!

This is for the Let's Get Real Party 

Challenge: Vegan for a Week

Some of my Facebook friends and I are doing a challenge to be vegan for a week. And let me tell you it is certainly a challenge! I love dairy and I am craving some greek yogurt and cheese!! Thank goodness I have some great people and my husband that are here to keep me accountable. There are so many vegan options and I am having fun experimenting with new recipes.

Breakfast:
My husband and I really enjoy overnight oats (also known as cold porridge or summer porridge). The normal recipe I use I can't use because it includes greek yogurt. I love having oats for breakfast so I decided to make mine the vegan way!

The Basic Oat Recipe:

1/2 Cup Old Fashioned Oats (Do not use steel cut or quick oats)

1/3 Cup Silk Dairy Free Yogurt 

1/3 Cup Almond milk

Combine all the ingredients in a mason jar and seal the lid and shake until well mixed

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Oats:

Add 2 Tbsp PB2 with chocolate and 1 whole banana split and cut to the basic oat recipe. Reseal the lid and shake again until mixed. Place in refrigerator until morning

Strawberry Banana Oats:

Add 1/3 cup frozen strawberries and 1/2 banana to the basic oat recipe. Reseal the lid and shake again until mixed. Place in the refrigerator until morning.

Lunch:
Lunchtime is always the hardest for me to find something healthy to eat because the boys are at school and my husband is at work so I am all alone. I don't want to create a huge mess preparing one meal for myself so this is when I snack and make my bad eating decisions. Having a meal plan works wonders and prepping foods that can be made in larger portions helps also. In anticipation of my lunch time, I decided to make a three bean salad.

Three Bean Salad:

1 Can Kidney beans

1 Can Garbanzo beans

1 Can Green beans

1/2 Cup Green pepper diced

1/2 Cup Red pepper diced

1 Apple (cored and diced) toss in lemon juice to keep from browning

3 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar

1 Tsp Dijon Mustard

1 Tsp Ground Cloves

1 Tsp Pepper

Combine all the ingredients (including the apple cider vinegar, mustard, pepper and cloves) into a container with a lid and shake. The salad will taste even better after being placed in the refrigerator overnight.

There are many variations of this salad including substituting black beans as one of the "three" beans,  or adding onion, celery.

Dinner:
Dinner time is family time so we have to have some good food for that! We are not forcing the boys to adhere to our diet so anything we make to eat I prepare the meat or other non vegan items separately. We made some Taco Salads for dinner tonight excluding the cheese, sour cream and meat for myself and my husband.

Our salad started with a base of Spring mix. I topped it with a mixture of corn and black beans. I grilled some onion with red and green peppers and layered that on top of the corn and black beans. To finish the salad I added avocado and black olives and used salsa as our dressing.

We are attempting to make some changes in our diets and keep our bodies healthy. I would love to hear about new challenges or ideas to add some excitement on our journey to a healthier lifestyle.