Sweet 28

My birthday recently passed on August 14th. Now that i’m in the 28th year of my life, I’ve been re-evaluating a lot of things. I’ve thinking about my life, goals, relationships, and truly living into my passions.

One of the things that I strive to do is live unapologetically. The truth is, we will all make mistakes. We will all do or have done things that we are not proud of. But I’m finding that it is way more important to not live a life that is a continual apology, but to live a life of continual forgiveness of myself and others. The older I get, the more I begin to realize the importance of building fences with gates instead of walls.

I’m letting go of the things that I can’t change. I’m letting go of the things that I don’t have control over. I am loving, believing in, affirming, and investing in myself. I am living the truth of my life, my experiences, and my beliefs in every present moment. These are things that I am choosing to do because they are life-giving to me. I am able to disagree, with love and respect. I am practicing living a life of authority and vulnerability.

And I love these shoes. I digress. These are all things I’ve pondered, wrestled with, and decided to live out. I’m excited for what this 28th year is unveiling. A few of my other goals consist of sharing quite a bit more and allowing much more space to create in being the artist and creative that has always been. Sweet 28.

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I Miss You!!!

Here are some sweet kisses from Milo for you!

I promise, I’m not gone…completely. I have been doing lots of hard work and PCOS activism over at PCOS Awareness Association (PCOSAA). I was recently given the opportunity to be the Co-President and serve alongside a small group of wonderfully dedicated, brilliant, and sassy women. We are laying a lot of ground work so it has been awesomely time consuming. I have so many things to share with you. Soon. Very soon. Cross my heart.

Big love to all of yous =P

Good Carbs, Bad Carbs

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If you haven’t had a chance to read my previous post, ‘PCOS, Insulin, and Carbohydrates,’ you can check it out here.

*Please keep in mind that some of the items on the ‘Good Carb’ list are not Paleo friendly (if this is the lifestyle method you’ve chosen).

I can clearly remember when my mom switched us from white bread to whole wheat bread. It was a sad day to eat toast. I’m sure we’ve all either had a similar moment or a knowing of wheat bread being a healthier option than white bread. So what’s the deal with this whole ‘good carb, bad carb’ situation?
Good carbohydrates provide your body with very important nutrients; whereas bad carbs don’t do anything positive in way of your health. Don’t get me wrong, they can be very fun to eat, but your internals and your waistline won’t be too happy over time.

When the rubber meets the road, carbohydrate quality is very important. The ‘Good’ ones gives you the phytonutrients, vitamins, minerals, and fiber that your body needs. ‘Bad’ carb don’t give you those things. They are void of these healthy elements are are easily digestible, making you hungry sooner.

Eating high quality carbs are VERY important for women with PCOS because it can help to stabilize you blood sugar and help you to avoid sugar spikes and crashes.

So what foods are considered ‘good’ carbs or ‘bad’ carbs?
Good Carbs
-Whole grain products (whole wheat breads, whole wheat pasta, brown rice)
-Fruits
-Non-starchy vegetables
-Legumes
-Nuts
-Non-sweetend dairy products

Bad Carbs
-Sugars
-Added sugars
-Refined/Enriched products (white breads, white rice, enriched pasta)
-Starchy vegetables (white potatoes)
-Cookies, cakes, donuts, etc.

Next, we’ll look at ways to incorporate more quality carbs into daily eating.

Your Heart & The Holidays

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It’s the Holiday Season. Families will be gathering, feasts will be prepared, tables will be shared, and gifts to exchange. The thing is, if you have been TTC-ing, the word ‘family’ begins to take on a different connotation. Family can turn into the mother, father, uncles, aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews that you love, into a glaring reminder that you currently have no children of your own. Prior to TTC-ing, it may have been easier to join in on the holiday festivities; then it occurs to you that you are on the sidelines. All of the joys from the season turn into a mirror of baby clothes and children’s toys.

Since my husband and I began TTC-ing, I’ve found the holidays to be increasingly difficult. This year, it’s the most intense sadness I’ve felt since losing my pregnancy in September. I had to ask myself ‘what am I going to do?’ ‘How am I going to make it through the holidays in one piece?’ After giving these questions some thought, I came up with a few solutions.

1. Make sure that family members understand that this is a difficult time and why.
2. Ask certain family members that you trust to stay aware of the forecast in the room and to keep an ear out for questionable kid conversation. We all (possibly) have that one insensitive person that will ask the annoying kid questions (i.e. When are you going to have kids? You’re clock is ticking.) or make insensitive statements (i.e. ‘Just let it go.’ ‘At least fill in the blank.’).
3. If it’s a situation when gifts are being opened, find out if the kids can have their prior to your arrival so you have to feel like the odd one out.
4. Stay home and have a lovely time with your spouse.
5. Plan an amazing vacation to Anywheresville, stick your toes in the sand, and have a Margherita or five.

I hope that this will be helpful for any TTCers going through a similar struggle. Take good care of your heart. Love yourself and your spouse through the holidays and try to enjoy one another. In the meantime, I will have the highest of hopes that your miracle will move from your heart into your arms.