kaylee may

12
May
2015

Where we have found peace

categories: DIY projects, Life, Marriage, Seton

This is the first time I have sat down — alone, just to sit — since my last blog post.

Life has been cray to the zee.

But oh so wonderful.

April 7, we bought a house.

Then we started packing…

On April 14, my mom came to town to stay for a week and watch Seton while Davey and I fixed up the house (when we weren’t working).

We put her to work during Seton’s naps! (aren’t we great hosts?)

Painting date nights are healthy for a marriage. 😉

We spent a lot of time at Ikea.

(with a lunch box as a purse, in Davey’s sweatshirt, and sporting jeans circa 1999 because that’s how I party)

April 21, Grandma left, and Seton cried. I cried inside because omghowamigoingtofixthehousewithaninemonthold.

But it was starting to come together…

On April 24, Davey and I decided to not stress for 2 hours and watch a movie together because we wanted to enjoy the last night in our rental house. Nostalgia kicked in and it kicked hard. We regretted that immediately the next day when nothing was really packed. (but not really–I wouldn’t change that night for anything)

April 25, we moved into the house (I also worked that day per dumb life decisions).

April 28, Seton started at a new daycare!

…and started wearing shoes

…and taking steps

May 2, Seton and I took had an adventure to St. Louis.

We also took a few/many/a million trips to Menards where Seton was mistaken for a boy day after day despite me adding more and more pink to her wardrobe each visit.

On May 7, our front door *broke* (aka Davey played around with the locks and got them stuck), so Seton and I were locked out at the convenient hour of hunger, nap time, diaper change time, and a thunderstorm.

On May 8, Davey went bowling with the fellas so I had a night to walk around the house and finish all the random projects he started.

Last night, after living here 2 weeks, I unpacked our bedroom.

And this morning, Grandpa stopped by the house during his layover!

And here I am today. Sitting.

I’ve decided that I won’t ever respond to someone with a quick, “busy!” when asked how I am doing. Life is busy, and in our busy-ness, there is peace. The monotony of painting poured prayers on my heart of hope in the future. The lifting/carrying of boxes showed me how blessed I am for my physical abilities. The unpacking of things that have been packed for three weeks reminded me that what I really need cannot be packed in a box. It’s been an amazing month of personal growth and familial growth as Davey and I worked toward the common good of creating a home.

02
Apr
2015

3 tips to preventing running injuries

categories: foot pain, Health, hip pain, knee pain, Low back pain, neck pain, running

The ice is melting. The sun is shining. The warmer temps are calling our names.

Before you lace up your running shoes and inhale in your first deep breaths of spring air, stop to read these injury prevention tips for runners.

injury, runner, prevention

Buy the right shoes.

Who needs an excuse to buy new shoes? Not this girl. But if you’re looking for one, here are three.

Buy new shoes if…

1. There is any breakdown in your current running shoe (aka your shoes are old!)
2. You have been running on a treadmill all winter and are switching to land.
3. You have been using your running shoes for walking.

Make sure to choose the right running shoe for your foot. You can read about how to choose the right shoe here.

Ease into outdoor running.

Your first outdoor routes of the season should be on level ground, then gradually start working in inclines and different terrain. Trail runs (personal fave) can quickly bring on ankle injuries if you haven’t worked up to them.

Pay attention to what your body is trying to tell you.

Muscles aches the day after running are signs your muscles are changing and adapting in good ways. Localized pain, sharp pain, or joint pains are signs you should ease off a bit.

Check to see if your local physical therapy clinic has a “Running Clinic” where your run can be analyzed, and you can get pointers on how to improve your stride!

Happy running!

05
Mar
2015

Whole30 Recap

categories: Recipes

The last time I cheated on anything was in 4th grade (on a test, question 13, the answer was A- The Iroquois) and since the little angel on my shoulder gives the little devil on the other shoulder a beat down all the live long day I was not about to cheat on Whole30.

So despite my numerous dreams of eating bagels and my daydreams of chocolate chips all over the place, I made it!

Whew, what an exercise of self discipline that I so needed.

On my last day of doing the Whole30 program, I want to share my thoughts before next week happens, and I forget all the feelings.

Best thing: I eat so many more vegetables than I used to, and I love them! After a 20 year sabbatical from brussel sprouts, I lived on the edge and roasted them, salted them, and — reluctantly–ate them. And I liked them. Going forward I will make sure to continue eating veggies at every meal and snack time! Here are some photos of meals I ate:

Chicken apple sausage (Whole30 compliant), zucchini, greens

Whole30 compliant turkey burger with fried egg and avocado, chicken salad with homemade pale mayo, tomato, green pepper on lettuce bed — Whole30 compliant turkey burger with fried egg and avocado, chicken salad with homemade paleo mayo, tomato, green pepper on lettuce bed

potatoes, fried egg, avocado (Davey's favorite) — potatoes, fried egg, avocado (Davey’s favorite)

my typical breakfast : cinnamon apples, eggs, sausage

spinach, egg, tomato, avocado, celery with homemade almond butter and unsweetened raisons

I also ate a lot of pork, chicken, salmon and tilapia for dinner with various veggies.

Worst thing: I got sick of eggs. Give me a few months. I can’t really even think about them right now without my stomach turning a little.

Overall thoughts: Melissa Hartwig, founder of the Whole30 program, was right. After 30 days, I no longer crave sweet things. I don’t see myself emptying my entire pantry just in case there is a bag of chocolate chips I forgot about anytime in the near future. But I will say I miss the whole experience of food. I miss sharing a Sunday afternoon coffee and cheesecake with Davey. I miss snuggling up to him and having a glass of wine. I miss going out to eat at our favorite breakfast place. I miss going to people’s houses and taking part in the food they prepared for their guests. Whole30 got me back on track of living in moderation and making more conscious decisions about food.

Buuuuuuut, I am really excited to share birthday cinnamon rolls tomorrow morning with Davey.

24
Feb
2015

3 easy ways to prevent knee pain

categories: Health, knee pain

Knee pain is one of the most common conditions I treat. To fix it, I alter a lot of bad habits and reorganize the way my patients move in basic daily tasks. I wish that I was somehow able to go back 10, 20, 30 years and tell my older patients these 3 easy ways to protect their knees from pain. Knee pain may have a small genetic component, but it can be entirely prevented through using our movement systems as they were designed to be used.

1. Sit in a mechanically aligned position. Don’t cross your legs. Crossing your legs places the hip and knees out of alignment, causing certain muscles to stiffen (I’m looking at you, IT band) and other muscles to lengthen (the gluts). Any muscle imbalance around the hips and knees causes the knees to move in a faulty pattern. When sitting, make sure to keep your knees aligned with your feet. If your feet point outward, but your knees point straight ahead, you are likely twisting your knee joint.

knee pain

2. Use good mechanics when getting up from a chair. Your knees should be aligned with your feet. As women, we tend to allow our knees to move together, or inward, when rising to stand and/or when sitting down. This causes relatively more pressure on the outside of our knees and stretches the ligaments on the inside of the knees, making the knee less stable. If you think about how many times we stand up and down in our lives, this can lead to enough wear and tear to cause knee pain.

knee pain

3. Don’t hyperextend. When you are waiting in line in the grocery store, talking to friends after church, or doing dishes, unlock your knees. It may be tiresome to stand with your knees unlocked, but overtime it will become a habit and prevent your ligaments from getting so loose that they lose the ability to truly stabilize your knee.

knee pain

Share with all your friends lest you want to spend retirement writing “Get well soon” cards for everyone who had knee replacements.

19
Feb
2015

3 ways I increased my breast milk supply while doing Whole30

categories: Health, Recipes

I made the mistake that so many people make when first doing Whole30. I didn’t consume enough calories to keep up my breastmilk supply. I also skipped pumping sessions at work, which certainly didn’t help. I began to panic as I saw the freezer stash deplete day after day and had to have the tough conversation with Davey as to whether we should buy formula. I said to him, “I’ll stop doing Whole30 before I buy of formula.” I’ve been so determined to breastfeed for a year–not that using formula is bad–but I really enjoy breastfeeding. As a working mom, it’s the one thing that only I can do for Seton. She has other people put her down for naps, feed her solids and bottles, etc, etc. Selfishly, I wanted to keep breastfeeding for just her and me.

I’m not a quitter. I was confronted with the dilemma of quitting breastfeeding or quitting Whole30.

So I decided I needed to find a way to keeping doing both.

The main thing I realized through reading things on the interweb is that I am not consuming enough calories. I used to eat cereal, yogurt, bagels, sandwiches that gave me plenty of calories to feed triplets (ha!). I went from calorie heaven to … well… a lot of lettuce and sweet potatoes. I have done 3 things to bump up my calorie intake in a healthy, Whole30 compliant, way.

1. I make a smoothie each morning. I drink half in the morning, then half when I get home from work. It contains:

4 cups water
2 bananas
1 cup blueberries
3 cups spinach

It tastes good (sweet from the fruit!), forces me to drink more water (extremely important for breastfeeding) and bumps my supply right back up. We aren’t encouraged to drink our calories, so I also make sure that I eat a hearty breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

2. I put a scoop of canned coconut milk in my coffee. I’m a black coffee kind of girl, but I’m trying to add healthy fats and calories where I can. This is a quick and easy solution that doesn’t rob coffee of its enriching flavor.

3. I make homemade almond butter. I throw a few cups of almonds in the food processor, grind for about 15 minutes (an exercise of patience), and then spread on celery sticks, carrots, apples, etc. It’s a quick way to eat good, healthy fat. And it tastes really good.

I would like to say I am also drinking a ton of water, but that one is still really hard for me. I don’t have the luxury of running to the bathroom every 30 minutes at work, so yeah. But I am trying!

Anyone else have any suggestions?

17
Feb
2015

Let us chat about food

categories: Health

Life has been oh so good to us lately. Seton’s personality has decided to emerge, and I am happy to announce she is a crawler and a puller-upper. I am unhappy to announce she is a morning person and a pea-hater. But such is life.

We have also been playing a lot of peek-a-boo…

which I tend to enjoy more than her.

I’ve also jumped on the #whole30 bandwagon. I feel like I’ve just been hanging off the back of the bandwagon by the tips of my fingers while my body flails in the air and slaps on the ground day after day, but that’s neither here nor there.

I guess it’s not that bad.

But I am going on no support in this household. Davey said he would do Whole30 if it meant eating a whole pizza in under 30 minutes. So, yeah.

BUT!

He has envied my meals and now requests that I make them for TWO! Small victory for me.

I have learned a few things since cutting out all dairy, grains, legumes, yummy food…

–I used to eat a LOT of sugar. I thought I was a healthy eater, but having to really spend time THINKING and DISCERNING about what I am eating, I realize I used to eat a lot of breads and sweets.

–The first few days of whole30, I would day dream about food. Maybe I used to do this anyway, and I just recognize it more now? Unsure. But I had visions of pretzels, bagels, and my favorite snack: dry cheerios with chocolate chips.

–Cooking healthy isn’t hard. Baking a sweet potato, frying an egg, cutting up an avocado is all very easy. It’s the planning part that’s tough, but it’s time I learn how to plan out my meals anyway. Without planning, I end up eating whatever is in sight as soon as I walk in the door from work which leads me to unhealthy choices.

–Cooking healthy does require a lot of trips to the grocery store, the loathe of my life. And I loathe the grocery store even more now that I can’t eat 99.99999999% of the food in it.

which leads me to…

–As a country, we eat a lot of chemicals. We eat a lot of things that are put in our food just to make it last longer on the shelf or taste more palatable to us WHEN IT ALREADY TASTES GOOD ANYWAY! You’ll see what I mean if you look at the label of everything you put in your cart the next time you’re shopping. Just check out how many foods have ingredients you can’t pronounce.

Ah, so many reflections on food.

Here are the stats so far:

Whole30 day: 14
Times I’ve cried because I felt sorry for myself: 1
Times I dreamed I was eating a bagel: 2
Times I have given into cravings: 0!

Anyone else doing whole30? Comment or email me your thoughts!

03
Feb
2015

Seton’s Nursery

categories: DIY projects, Seton

I never really understood what people meant when they asked me, “What’s the theme of your wedding?”

Um, marriage.

Or, “What’s the theme of your nursery?”

Um, baby.

Maybe it’s my dominant left hemisphere, but I am not one to put a lot of time into decorations and themes. And much to my dismay, I did not go through that nesting phase everyone talks about. I was hoping to accomplish a lot during that time.

So Seton’s nursery is really just bits and pieces of baby things. I wasn’t going to document it because it’s really nothing special. But as we get closer to buying a house, I realized I wanted to remember Seton’s first room and where I spent so much time nursing her, changing her, cuddling her.

So here is Seton’s baby themed nursery!

We went to Goodwill and picked up a copy of Goldilocks and the Three Bears. We put the pages in $1 frames and voila. A decoration!

I found her hamper on sale at a fabric store, and the diaper genie was a gift (thanks coworkers). Maaaaybe my favorite thing about her room is that fan that comes in handy when Davey lets out yelps or sings loudly from the kitchen (he does it a lot). That fan has saved Davey from some of my motherly rage.

We found her dressers at Le Good de Will as well for the low price of $10. I took off the ugly orange knobs they came with and replaced them with new knobs from Ace. I wanted a short dresser that could double as a changing table.

Seton’s piggy bank was a gift (thanks Chad and Keriann), and such a cute one. It says her name on the side.

Her rocking chair that houses her furry friends was also a gift (thanks Nora!)–I can’t wait until she is older and sits on it to read!

Her book basket is a sewing basket that was used by my great grandmother. The majority of her books were from my cousin (thanks Kara) who is a teacher! Such an awesome gift.

Another amazing gift (thanks Joe and Kathi!) is this rocking bear (it’s a bear, right? I’m not good with animals). For a long time Seton would giggle from her changing station, and I couldn’t figure out what she was laughing at. She was looking at this bear! She gets a kick out of it every day.

Her night light (thanks Megan!) has saved me from many stubbed toes in the wee hours of the morning. I love that it’s so cute and personalized!

I was counting on the nesting phase for motivation to make a mobile for Seton, but since that never happened she stares at a blank wall and a crucifix which was a wedding gift (thanks Caris and Rob!). I love walking in after her naps and see her staring at our Lord.

And since I am Mother Paranoia about SIDs, we never put cute bumper pads or pillows in the crib. Feel free to pin that to Pinterest.

I also ignored everyone who told me a rocking chair was a must-have and kept Davey’s futon (that somehow managed to make it on the moving truck) for a nursing spot and guest bed. I can’t believe I am saying this, but…Davey, you were right. I am glad we kept it. It’s a great nursing spot. So great in fact, I have fallen asleep there myself.

And the view that I have stared at countless times over the past 6 months…

Maybe not Pinterest-worthy, but I love her room and will miss it when we move.

12
Jan
2015

Cozy Cauliflower Soup

categories: Recipes

I hate cooked cauliflower, so I don’t know what possessed me to think it was a good idea to make this. I blame the luring depths of my google search for healthy soups and the guise the cauliflower ones took on to resemble their less healthy counterpart, potato soup.

Whatever it was that convinced me it was a good idea to make cauliflower soup, I am so grateful. This is my new favorite winter soup!

I combined recipe ideas from my google search based on ingredients I already had in my kitchen. The closest recipe to mine is from Slender Kitchen and can be found here.

cozy cauliflower soup

Cozy Cauliflower Soup

Ingredients
1 frozen bag of cauliflower
1 cup diced carrots
1 onion, diced
3 celery stalks, diced
2 garlic cloves, diced
4 cups water
1/4 cup flour
12 oz. fat free evaporated milk
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup almond milk
1 can celery soup
Salt and pepper
1.5 cups shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese

Directions
Combine vegetables and water. Let simmer until vegetables are soft. Add remaining ingredients (except cheese, salt, and pepper) and turn heat to high for 10 minutes. Stir frequently.

Add cheese, salt, and pepper.

Blend soup to desired consistency.

I LOOOOOOVE our handy dandy vegetable cutter thingy mabob.

My not so helpful sous chef:

YUM!

02
Dec
2014

On the standards of fatherhood

categories: Uncategorized

Our daycare thinks Davey is the bees’ knees. He is. I know that I really lucked out with him (see here for more on that). But what has become alarming to me is how much he is praised for being a great father (he is a great father) for doing basic things any parent should do.

Take for example the little adventure he had with Seton a few weeks ago. The daycare called to let us know Seton had a low grade fever and may be showing some signs of an ear infection. They happened to reach Davey first. Davey decided he might as well pick Seton up and bring her in to the doctor. (Davey later admitted he did this so he didn’t have to hear me worrying about her that evening and wondering if we should schedule an appointment. Well played, kind sir.) Davey brought her to doctor, the presumed ear infection was ruled out, and Seton returned to daycare to happily shriek her way through the day as she so often does. When I picked her up from daycare, the staff commented on what a great father Davey is. He came right away. He took her to the doctor! He loves her! Ill be the first to tell you Davey is an amazing father. But I have to wonder if it were me–the mother–who picked her up to bring her to the doctor, would the reaction have been the same? Would they have told Davey what a great mother I was? We will never know, but for the purpose of this post and all logic and rationality—no. No, they would not have said that. Because for some reason (we all know what that reason is, let’s be honest), it’s surprising to the world when a father steps up and parents.

Since I can use this blog to air out my tangents, I also want to stop this trend of people asking me if my husband is “baby-sitting” or is going to “baby-sit.” If I go to get my hair cut, the stylist asks, “who is with the baby? Is your husband babysitting?”

No. My husband does not baby-sit. He fathers. He parents. I don’t pay him by the hour. He loves our child and cares for her because of his love. Because he chose this responsibility. Just like me.

Let’s stop holding men to such low standards, and maybe they will live up to higher ones.

02
Nov
2014

On being a working {out of the home} mom

categories: Life, Seton

I’ve been back to work for three weeks, and I still get asked everyday if I miss my daughter. The short answer is “yes.” The long answer is that yes, leaving my three month child for 8+ hours each day is the most unnatural feeling in the world. I went from having her literally feeding off my body to leaving her during her most awake and alert times of the day. She was beginning to see me as the person to calm her when she was sad, make her feel comfortable when she needed a diaper change, and feed her when she was hungry. I was just beginning to feel more like a mom and less like a lump of a postpartum zombie.

I miss her terribly every minute I am away from her, but there are a lot of good things about our “situation” (I guess we can call it that). Here are some pros and cons:

–CON: Every time I pick her up after work she is sitting in some kind of device. A swing, a rock ‘n play, a bumbo.

— PRO: She is constantly surrounded by other kids who have crawled up to her. They’re usually babbling, smiling, touching her toes. She loves it.

–CON: She smells like her daycare teacher every night. I guess this is somewhat of a pro, since her teacher smells good, but we don’t want our baby smelling like another woman, do we?

–CON: The cost. It’s insane.

–MAJOR CON: She is exhausted every evening. I bring her home, feed her, and she falls asleep for an hour. This equates to getting an hour of time each day with her when she is awake.

–MAJOR PRO: She is surrounded by toys toys toys. Her environment is so stimulating and mentally enriching.

–PRO: Her teacher does things with her I would never have thought to do, like put her foot prints on a keepsake paper in the colors of candy corn for Halloween.

–PRO: I’ve grown to LOVE breastfeeding. I actually look forward to waking up in the morning (gasp, I know. ME?) to feed her, and I get excited for sitting down with her every evening after our busy days. It’s one thing that only I can offer her. I think I appreciate it so much more now that we spend time apart.

And with being back at work:

–PRO: Three times a day I get to sit in a closet to pump breast milk…which means three times a day I get complete silence to do paperwork. This helps sooo much with time management. I get out of work closer to “on time” than ever before.

–CON: Three times a day, I sit in a closet.

–PRO: I LOVE my job. It’s great to be back with patients. It’s rewarding to make people feel better every day. I missed it when I was away, and it feels good using my skills again.

–CON: That guilty feeling I get from leaving my daughter every day and actually enjoying myself.

–PRO: Money.

So this is where our little family is right now, and it is good. As good as the “situation” can be.