My PB + J

a letter to brayden – 6 months

dear brayden-
   today marks your half birthday. it’s surreal how fast the first part of your life has sped on by. day by day you become more alert, grabbing for more of your surroundings, talking, laughing and melting my heart more with each day. you follow everything your sister does and within a few months you will be chasing her around, while i want you to slow down i cannot wait to see you play with one another. at dinner time each night, while you sit in your bumbo, your sister and i play the “ahhhh-dude” phrase game. this saying, no matter what time of day we do this we get the sweetest deep bellied laughs. your sister loves playing peek-a-boo with you and often she will lay with you on your play mat to just hangout. you are quite the active roller, back scooter, and love the flying/swimming position. you have all the crawling movements down you just need to put them all together and then you’ll be off. since last month you have slept in your crib every night from roughly eight to ten hours. there are nights where you wake for your pacifier or for a few ounces of formula but you go right back out. you still take three naps during the day, which is amazing. i am happy to have two children that love sleep as much as i do. you are our true blessing. 
happy half year sweet boy. the next six months are going to be a fun ride as you discover your motor skills and everything else this world has to offer you. 
  • 15 pounds 2 ounces – 15th percentile. still my peanut. 
  • 29 3/4 inches – 70th percentile, long & lean. 
  • size three diapers
  • 9 month clothing for length, 6 months for your little waist. 
  • we’re going through a two pound tub of formula each week. i don’t understand how you don’t weigh more.  
  • apples, pears, peaches, bananas, peas, green beans, yams, sweet potatoes, carrots, rice and oatmeal.

you melt my soul. 

campus book rental & operation smile {sponsored post}

as you all know, our son was born with a cleft lip. clefts are the most common birth defect in the world with a child being born with a cleft abnormality every three minutes. most live a lifetime full of difficulties with eating, speech and societal strain. our son was lucky enough to have gone through his surgery at the age of three months but some go a lifetime without the repair. we consider ourselves one of the lucky ones to have been blessed with amazing insurance and doctors.
when brayden had his surgery we met anne. she was on his operating team and has traveled the world with operation smile as a medical volunteer since 1982 when they began changing the lives of children in need. operation smile has provided over 200,000 free surgeries for children and young adults all over the world. for as little as $240 for each surgery we can change the lives of thousands of children one smile at a time. 
in 2011, campus book rentals launched their making a difference program, which donates a portion of each book rental to operation smile. they have set a goal of donating a minimum of 1,000 life changing surgeries, and from a mother of a cleft baby i can not even begin to tell you how life changing each surgery can be.
a few reasons why campus book rentals rocks (besides their amazing dedication to aid with operation smile) they offer: 
√ free shipping both ways 
√ flexible renting periods
√ 30-day risk free guarantee
√ save 40-90% off bookstore prices
√ they pioneered textbook rentals
√ monthly facebook giveaways & textbook scholarships 
√ you can highlight in the books 

 if you or anyone you know might be attending college and are in need of a cheaper book option remember campus book rentals for your upcoming semester. you will save your wallet a few dollars by doing so and you will forever change the life of a child in need. what’s better than that?!

disclaimer: this was a sponsored post by campusbookrentals.com. all opinions expressed are 100% my own and not influenced by monetary compensation.

it’s a weekly thang {weigh-in wednesday}

hello, wednesday! i have a slightly better outlook today vs. yesterday. one of my closest friends, suzanne, sent me a book as my reward for finishing my third 5k, she also happens to the editor on the book. soon after the UPS man dropped it off i ripped open the envelope, saw her inspirational message and began reading until soon i was at page sixty. many passages stood out to me but this one spoke to me:

this weight loss journey is an act you must figure out. you’ve spent way too much time feeling bamboozled, lost and defeated. now is your time to bring forth the realization that the choices you make, and how you take care of your health is significant in your world. – pg 31
you might be asking yourself, well, what is the book melissa?!? the book is called, burn your fat pants, and it is more than just a book. it’s a club for girlfriends to support one another and to provide the inspiration you need to find yourself to be happy with your body, mind and soul. i haven’t finished the book yet, but i know suzanne wouldn’t send me something if she didn’t believe in it and honestly she knows me well because it’s exactly what i needed. 
if you want to purchase the book you can here and here. 


my starting weight: 170 
today’s weight: 149
 week one: 6 pounds
 week two: 3 pounds
 week three: 1 pound
 week four: 1 pound
 week five: 3 pounds 
 week six: 0 pounds 
week seven: 2 pounds 
week eight: 1 pound 
week nine: +.6 ounces 
 week ten: 2.6 pounds  
 week eleven: 0 pounds 
week twelve: +.02 ounces
 week thirteen: +2.4
week fourteen: 3.2 
total weight loss for week fifteen: 1 pound

total weight loss: 21 pounds  
pounds away from goal #1: 1
pounds away from goal #2: 10

i finally broke out of the 150’s! i did a happy dance last week when i saw this number for the first time. it could have been lower this week i am not going to lie. after the 5k i was depressed and at my mother’s birthday lunch i went on a downward spiral. i ate spinach dip, a korean chicken pizza and then on sunday i ate really badly. i had weighed myself really quick on sunday to see the damage i had done. i went up to 152.6. i wasn’t worried because everything i was craving was chock full of sodium and i am due to start my period tomorrow so i know the water weight will go away. this morning, however, i got back to 149. my weight will always fluctuate, which i am okay with. after seeing 149 last thursday i tried on a pair of my skinny jeans from f21 that are a size 29 and they fit. barre classes to start on friday for the next six weeks! 


housewives recap – glamping {rhoc}



 
heather: i love how she blasts alexis, it makes me happy. watching these women cook over fire cracks me up. at least heather was listening. she’s pretty savvy this heather. i love that her husband drives a prius. makes me like terry even more. i also believe she is spot on with believing there is something alexis is hiding.

gretchen: guzzle some dayquil and suck it up woman! you have a cold, you can see it in your face. 


tamra: the boobies look better. i cannot believe she kept her implants, weird. if alexis’ implants are that big, omg. 



vicki:  nice apology but did she only do it to spite tamra? i think so. i love that brianna went glamping with them. 


alexis: glamping? can’t bend over? can’t do this, can’t do that. what can you do? even your pre-made smores were pathetic. dance party in the car. . .oy vey. you got a simple nose job, it’s not the end of the world. it does not make you any more important. all white camping? your not at the ski resort. fake rings, flashy cars, not understanding the house situation; girl…admit you’re broke. 


the hubby says: “it would be nice if there was a bear and ate all their asses”. “jim obviously isn’t as wealthy as we all see”. “her nose doesn’t look that great”. 

lemon loaf cake {tuesdays with dorie}

this weeks tuesdays with dorie recipe is lemon loaf cake. to check out the recipe head on over to the host blogs: treats  & the beauty of life . 
i was slightly apprehensive after my epic pizza rustica fail on easter. it looked amazing but i over baked it, who does that? i remembered late yesterday that today was the day to bake the cake. i looked at my lemon tree and didn’t feel like picking any of my tumor like lemons so we headed off to the store for a few normal ones. after i fed the wee ones this morning i whipped it up, replacing the heavy cream with buttermilk and adding in a tad of lemon extract.  after the cake had cooled i cut a slice and loved seeing the slice flecked with lemon rind. it was gorgeous. i decided to lightly grill two slices and topped them with fresh whipped cream and locally grown strawberries. payton was ecsastic because she has been begging me for a strawberry shortcake, the show is her newest obsession and she simply loves cake. this ones for her! 

the cake has a slight crunch to the crust, which i love on any pound cake. the cake is moist, a little extra because of the buttermilk vs. heavy cream replacement. the slightly grilled cake adds a different flavor, pairing it with the cool whipped cream and fresh berries slips me straight into the summer months. you could easily use this cake for a parfait, with some homemade jam or simply by itself.