Anyway, we kicked off our weekend with a going away dinner (my least favorite part of the military life!) at a Hibachi restaurant for one of my favorite Army couples here. As always, the food was delicious but the highlight of the night was watching Caleb. It was his first time at a hibachi restaurant and he was hilarious!

Group shot! And check out our creepy eyes!

The rest of our weekend was filled with copious amounts of yummy yoga and then the hubs and I took turns watching the kiddo while we slaved away DIY-ing a project that has been on our list since we purchased our home over two years ago. It was finally time to get our kitchen out of the 80′s with the dark oak crown molding and baseboards, aging cabinets, and disgusting yellow walls.

With the help of a friend for a few hours on Saturday, we deglossed, sanded, primed, painted, and sealed FIVE coats of paint on the upper cabinets, reattached new hinges and pulls, slapped FOUR coats of paint on all of the trim and the windows, put three coats of paint on the ugly gray beadboard, and then got on our hands and knees and scraped paint off our floors and reshined them, over and over again.

We’ve been doing this since Saturday and now it’s Monday night and we haven’t finished. We finally just finished taping off all of the trim so we can actually tackle our Big Bird Vomit walls tomorrow night.

But look! TA-DA! The culmination of all of our back breaking work so far! Progress, baby!

Granted, we still have to finish the bottom row of cabinets but I can already tell just how much brighter, and cleaner the kitchen looks with a fresh coat of white paint. We’ll finish the bottom cabinets next weekend but tomorrows task is to finally get rid of the Heinz mustard walls. I mean, look at this effing yellow. It is DISGUSTING. My eyes have bled for the entire 2 years that we lived here and I can’t believe I have lived with it for so long. To say that I’m excited about updating our kitchen is a huge understatement. Hence why this actually warrants a blog post about it, I am THAT excited haha.

Needless to say though, I’m exhausted beyond relief. Between teaching, mommy-ing, daily household tasks, commitments with my husbands unit FRG and also dealing with all of this crazy moving stuff, I am starting to really slow down.

So after the hubs and I put Caleb to bed this evening, we sat down for a simple grilled cheese date. Nothing beats a buttery, gooey and cheesy grilled cheese sandwich and a quiet late night dinner with the love of your life. Ahhh…

It was the most perfect and simplest way to end our weekend of butt busting work :)

PS. I finally took pictures so I can share my favorite avocado hair mask recipe so expect to see that post soon, I promise! I’ll be pretty busy this week with fundraising and working but I’ll try to post more than once. Keyword being “TRY” ;)

And finally before I sign off, I have to send my deepest condolences to everyone affected by the tornado today in Oklahoma. My heart breaks for the families who have lost their homes and loved ones. I have a brother in the area and between coats of paint, had my eyes glued to the news for updates. I can’t even begin to imagine what those families are going through, life is too short and I really wish Mother Nature could just cut it out. I know it doesn’t mean much but I’ll be praying for these families…

“Yay, new day! ENERGY! Coffee – what’s that!? Yoga! Slam weights! Chase Caleb! BAGELS! Cook all of the things! My pants fit! HAPPY!

My nights:

“YOU DID THIS TO ME! I HATE YOU! NO MORE KIDS! Chocolate! FOOT RUB! MOAR CHOCOLATE! MY ANKLES ARE HUGE! Is it bed time yet!? Why don’t my pants fit anymore!?!?!? MUST EAT ALL OF THE CHOCOLATE! FORKLIFT OFF THE COUCH PLEASE! Blog? PSH Yeah right! ZZZZZZZ…”

Okay seriously though, let’s get down to business and get on with the fun preggo survey.

How far along? 35 weeks..which means 2 weeks till full term. SOMEONE PINCH ME!

How big is baby? All of the websites say around 5-6 pounds. I say, I’m carrying a teenager.

How I’m feeling? I’m ready to have this baby! I can’t wait to meet our baby girl, kiss her squishy cheeks, and let Caleb hold her. He plays with my belly all the time, I think he knows what’s up. Plus I can’t wait to double the adorableness in this house! :)

Weight? Still huge. And still not measuring my weight at home (go me – huzzah!). I’ll find out at my doctors appointment in a few days.

How I’m changing? Last update I said that one of the ways I’m changing is that I’m nervous about juggling two kids. A change from that is that I now feel this overwhelming sense of calm. I’ve realized that it is what it is. Whatever happens, happens for a reason and I’m okay with that.

What I miss? Still missin’ the same ol’. I can’t wait to push myself in workouts and drown myself in wine. Almost there!

Symptoms?  I get braxton hicks EVERY.SINGLE.NIGHT. They’re pretty strong and sometimes even painful. It has me worried that I won’t be able to decipher between braxton hicks contractions and real labor because with my labor with Caleb, none of the contractions were really consistent until the last hour before I delivered, and then they were all of a sudden right on top of each other. I hope I’ll have a clearer labor this time. My last labor was 5 1/2 hours and if this second baby is any faster, I really want to make sure I get to the hospital on time. I just need to make sure I’m actually in labor!

Cravings? Chocolate and fruit. Lots of fruit. And even more chocolate.

Food Aversions? After taking a food handlers course for my volunteer position for the Army today, I now never want to eat chicken or step foot into a buffet restaurant ever again.

Highlights this week? We got baby A’s clothes organized and the hubs took “maternity” pics of me! We’re too cheap to pay for professional ones and just wanted a simple picture to place in baby A’s nursery.

We took a few more but I didn’t have makeup on so I’ll refrain from sharing. Don’t want to scare anyone new to my blog ;)

And that’s it for this weeks update! To my local friends, there’s a lot going on in town this weekend so make sure you follow me on Facebook as I’ll be sharing updates on all of the local shenanigans.

Have an amazing weekend!

Of course a day at the beach and mothers day wouldn’t be complete without being treated to seafood…including delicious conch fritters that I have been craving forever!

Not going to lie, I may have teared up a little seeing Caleb refuse a high chair in favor of a booster seat. It was only my second Mother’s Day and already he is growing up on me so quickly. Stop being such a big boy, Caleb!

This mother’s day was such a simple, beautiful day and one that made me realize that I really need to give credit where credit is due.

I know mothers day is supposed to be about all the amazing mommas out there but I just have to thank my husband for being so amazing lately. I don’t say it enough but I am so thankful that he has been so much more patient and generous with me during this icky time of my pregnancy. Last year he was gone during my last trimester so having him here to rub my feet every night, help me off the couch (yes, that happens lol), and to bring me tea or whatever I ask for without ever complaining has been so invaluable to me. It’s been a crazy time for the both of us and with everything he’s been dealing with at work, he still manages to come home and step it up with the house and with Caleb every chance he gets.

To my hunky man, I can’t thank you enough.

To my beautiful mom, my ma in law, and to all of the other amazing moms out there who are doing the best they can, thank you. One day is not enough for all of the work that you ladies do.

Happy (insanely long) reading!

So what exactly is Yoga? Yoga is not just the poses you see in pictures like the one above. Yoga is an entire practice of achieving optimal health on all levels: physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. And when it comes to spirituality, it is not geared towards one’s specific religion but is used to enhance whatever religion you may practice. One of the ways of achieving this mind and body enlightenment is through the 8 limb path of yoga. I won’t go into details with the 8 limb path but basically each limb is used as a guide to achieve enlightenment for all parts of our lives. The physical practice of yoga is actually only one limb of the path, just goes to show that there is so much more to yoga than most believe.

Why you should try yoga? Well for one, it feels AWESOME. Yoga also helps develop stronger and leaner muscles, it improves your posture, strengthens your core and lower back, and can even improve your coordination and muscle tissues. But the most notable benefit of practicing yoga would be the peace of mind that comes with practicing and being yoga. Yoga gave me peace at a time in my life when I felt my loneliest. It taught me to anchor my mind into the present and to stop worrying about my past or future. As a result, I stressed less about our current situation and looked at each new day with a more positive light. It’s made a huge difference in how I approach every day and I love it.

Styles of Yoga
As yoga has gained popularity in recent years, there are a bunch of new styles of yoga popping up everywhere. But to try and keep this post relatively short (hah!), I’m going to stick to the oldest and most popular styles of yoga that you’ll typically come across.

Vinyasa Yoga - Also known as…one of my favorites, haha. Vinyasa yoga is a style of yoga where you transition, or flow, from one pose to the next while syncing your breath to the the movement. It’s a style derived from Patabhi Joi’s Ashtanga yoga and can be done by students of all levels.

Why do I love vinyasa so much? I love that it feels like a beautiful dance where each movement is calculated and transitions so gracefully to the next. I also love that the breath plays such a huge role in reaching and holding a pose as it really helps me to forget everything else in the world and just focus on what I’m doing at that exact moment I practice. And finally, I love that in most vinyasa classes there is an opportunity to individually express an asana to one’s preference. You can stay right where you are, or reach the fullest expression of a pose which can be quite a challenge to some yogis.

It also happens to be one of the styles I’m certified in, along with Hot Yoga (below).

Bikram Yoga - Bikram Yoga is a series of 26 poses and 2 breathing exercises done in a heated room, founded by Bikram Choudhury. The same 26 poses are used and never change.

I’ve only done Bikram a few times and while I love the heat, I’m not particularly fond of the style. I get bored easily and tend to favor variety. I also prefer classes that incorporate spirituality and with the Bikram classes I’ve tried, I missed that experience. If anyone else’s Bikram experience differed from mine, chime in and let me know. Maybe it was just the studio? I’d always be willing to give it another try!

Hatha Yoga – This is another confusing term in yoga since it essentially describes all physical aspects of yoga. But when you see Hatha Yoga on a studio’s list of classes that means that the class is more of a slower paced classed with an emphasis on deep stretches of beginner type poses and there is no flow between stretches. Hatha classes are typically seated  with a strong concetration on meditation and breathing. They’re very relaxing and I believe they’re a great supplemental class to a vigorous yoga practice.

Ashtanga Yoga – Another form of yoga derived from Patahbi Jois, Ashtanga uses a vinyasa like flow but stresses binding, breathing, focus, and is faster paced. It’s considered a form of power yoga and is awesome for people who are looking to challenge themselves even more.

Iyengar Yoga – Iyengar yoga has a strong focus on body alignment and classes typically use straps, blankets, and blocks to attain proper alignment. Lots of standing poses are used and poses are held for a longer time then in vinyasa. Iyengar yoga is considered to be very helpful for beginners who are learning to balance but also for those who want to learn the deep root of poses and correct their form.

Hot Yoga - Another favorite of mine but unfortunately, this is commonly mistaken with bikram yoga which is completely different. Hot yoga was founded by Sri Bishnu Ghosh and is a specific style of yoga where you practice a series of stationary postures in a heated room. It’s important to note however, Hot Yoga is not just any style of yoga in a heated room. You’re practicing a slower paced flow-like sequence of yoga, holding the poses for a few more breaths then you would in vinyasa yoga, and you don’t practice the same 26 poses as you would in Bikram.

I love this style because I feel that it balances out a Vinyasa or Ashtanga practice. Holding poses longer challenges me to really focus on my alignment and breathing and the heat just adds another challenging but fun element for me.

Restorative Yoga – Restorative Yoga classes use props to assist with holding poses for a long time for the purpose of deepening stretches and getting the body to open. Most of the poses are done laying down and restorative yoga is one of the most relaxing and calming types of yoga. It’s also another great compliment to a more vigorous type practice.

Other styles of yoga that I haven’t mentioned but I would definitely recommend checking out: Kundalini Yoga,  Yin Yoga, Kripalu yoga, and Jivamukti. Since yoga has been around forever, there are so many other styles to note but again, not trying to write out a novel here ;)

Picking a mat
If you’re just starting out, you can either rent a mat if you’re trying yoga at a studio or pick one up at a discount outlet store like TJMaxx for around $20.00. If you’re looking to invest in a mat the top 3 most popular mat brands are:

Manduka - My absolute favorite. It’s the Cadillac of yoga mats but if you’re going to be up close and personal with your mat, you might as well make sure you’re in love with it ;) It’s incredibly sticky, durable, doesn’t smell, and lasts forever. LOVE it!

Lululemon – Also another great mat maker. It’s pretty sticky but when you sweat profusely sometimes you’ll find yourself slipping. I also don’t like that it stains easily and shows wear and tear but it’s still a great mat!

Jade – Comparable to the Manduka pro mat, these mats are very environmentally friendly and have a great grip. Also expensive but again, it’s a great mat…just not as great as the Manduka in my opinion ;)

Ultimately, I believe that yoga can be done anywhere, anytime and even without a mat. But if you’re working on inversions or arm balances and you’re trying to make sure you’re not sliding all over the place, it is recommended to pick up a good mat and the three I listed are great mats to check out. Having a good mat makes all the difference in a hot studio when you’re sweaty and trying to balance all of your body weight on just your two hands.

Online Class Recommendations
I actually prefer new students to try out a class before diving into their own practice but if you don’t have the resources to get to a studio, here are some great online recommendations. I get asked this question A LOT so I hope this helps!

YogaGlo.com -  You have to pay for a membership which is around $18.o0 a month but the classes are awesome. They’re taught from the most popular and widely known yoga teachers and a lot of the videos are of the entire class practicing so you feel like you’re getting a full class experience. Teachers I’d reccommend: Tiffany Cruinshank, Dice Lida-Klein, Briohny Smith, Kathryn Budig.

DoYogaWithMe.com – This is a free site and is very easy to find a class tailored to your needs. And did I mention that it was free? Note, I have come across some videos that have left me scratching my head but the fact that it’s a free resource and offers a good variety of classes outweighs the bad ;)

Curvyyoga.com -  This is actually a blog but she offers great online classes. I love that she is breaking certain stereotypes around yoga and believe this is a great place to start for new beginners.

Myths I’d like to dispel
Yoga is group fitness. It’s not. When you practice yoga, you are practicing your own form of yoga. The mat is your space and you’re right where you should be, not where your neighbor is. Mind your mat and your own practice to achieve optimal results during your experience.

You’re going to love every yoga class you go to. You’re not. Sometimes you click with teachers and sometimes you just don’t. It’s not a big deal and doesn’t meant that certain teacher is a representative of all yoga experiences. There are many different styles of yoga and styles of teaching, you just have to weed out the ones that work for you. The benefit of this is that you’ll be practicing more as you find a teacher you love ;) Keep going and keep practicing!

Yoga is about the pose. It’s not.  And I can’t stress this enough. As I mentioned above, the physical practice of yoga is only a small part of the entire yoga experience. Never sacrifice your body for the glory of a pose. It’s been said many times that the best practice is not the one that goes the deepest but the one that knows and is in tune with their own body. It may be inspiring to look at other yogi’s accomplishing awesome things with their bodies, but know and respect your own body. Do not hurt yourself trying to mimic other yogis.

Yoga teachers are pretty much perfect. Most definitely not. I am a clear example of this. I’m not a vegetarian or vegan, I don’t wear Lululemon all the time, and I don’t buy organic clothes or shop organic all the time. I also lose my temper more than I’d like to admit. But I do my best to live and be yoga with mediation, and by practicing loving kindness to everyone and everything around me daily. I may not always succeed but it’s how I’m being on the path to there that matters. I am constantly striving to learn and to grow.

Yoga is just for thin, WASP-Y females. It’s not. Yoga originated in a country where it was founded and practiced by men. Only since it’s been westernized has the stereotype that yoga is just for women has gained popularity. It actually grinds my gears that yoga has become so inclusive because yoga is so beneficial for EVERYONE. I wish it was more affordable for low income areas and I really wish that more men would recognize the true benefits of yoga, it’s not just a silly stretching and breathing exercise. Spread the word!

And that’s all I have for today’s post on yoga. If you have any other questions, hit me up in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer them ASAP or come up with another post.

One last thing before I sign off, I’m offering a free yoga class to members of the Fort Bragg Chapter of Team Red White and Blue next Saturday afternoon. The goal of Team Red White and Blue is to connect veterans and active service members through physical activities and yoga is just one of the many ways among many other events that the chapter provides to achieve this. If you’re interested in attending the class or becoming a member of Team Red White and Blue, message me for details and I can pass you along to the social outreach director.

Have a happy Tuesday folks! Off to get a run in with the kiddo! :)

Oh you know, just riding in style while rockin’ my jammies for our roadtrip back home.

Guess who’s happy about leaving us a stinky surprise?

“Stretching his hand to reach the stars, man too often he forgets the flowers at his feet…”

Have a happy, healthy, and amazing week friends! We have another crazy busy week over here but nothing we can’t handle! :)

Anyway, I ended up snapping a few belly pics before my class tonight so I figured they would suffice for a pregnancy update. Finally. No fancy weekly tripod pics like my first pregnancy though, oops!

So here I am in all of my big buddha belly glory.

And for the fun pregnancy survey:

How far along? 32 weeks. Holy balls! 8 weeks left till baby ‘A’ makes her appearance!

How big is baby? At my last ultrasound 2 weeks ago the tech informed me that baby girl is measuring exactly at 3 1/2 pounds and I’m measuring a week ahead. So baby is big. Just like her momma ;)

How I’m feeling? Huge. I’m still lifting weights, running, and doing yoga but not everyday like I did with Caleb. It’s more like every other day with this one and as a result, I’m feeling and looking it. I’ve gotten bigger with this pregnancy and it shows. My belly is rounder, I’ve gained weight all over, and I hurt all over.

To sum up how I’m feeling, we have to register for a PO box in Germany and I was telling the hunk that we should probably register one for my belly since it basically requires it’s own zip code. That is how ginormous I feel.

Weight? Huge. I don’t know how much I’ve gained, my scale is still broken and I haven’t had the heart to fix it yet. At my last appointment I was at 29lbs and it’s been a few weeks since. Let’s hope I don’t gain too much more within this homestretch, I’ll be happy if I keep the weight gain under 40lbs.

How I’m changing? Have I mentioned how huge I am? That’s one way I’m changing. I’m also getting nervous to have two under two, and I’m nervous about breastfeeding a newborn while keeping a toddler entertained. I also worry about how our kids will adjust to the time difference when we move overseas. So I guess the other way that I’m changing is that I’m going from relaxed about this whole pregnancy to suddenly becoming a worrywart.

What I miss? Being able to really push myself in workouts. I also miss jump roping, box jumps, doing certain twists and arm balances in yoga, raw oysters, and margaritas. I could really go for an ice cold margarita on the rocks right now. MMMMm…

Symptoms?  Fun braxton hicks contractions at the most inopportune times, sore hips, sciatic nerve pain in my lower back, and I recently experienced round ligament pain that had me debilitated and bed ridden for a few days. Occasionally I also experience the joys of nausea and indigestion. So much fun, y’all!

Cravings? Chocolate, cheese, wine and margaritas (sad face), bagels with chive and onion cream cheese, and pineapple.

Food Aversions? None. I will eat anything and everything at this point. And apparently it shows.

Highlights this week? Well besides the standard Caleb lighting up my every day with his gorgeous smile and my husband giving me foot rubs, today happened to include another highlight of my week. I attended a volunteer recognition ceremony for my husband’s division and as I shook the general’s hand, he stopped me and said “congrats on the baby, you look great!”. After feeling like a hippopotamus on steroids for the past few weeks, hearing how genuine he sounded actually felt really nice. It’s the little things, right?

Finally, after the ceremony ended one of the photographers asked to take a picture our little family and we got this gem of a picture out of it:

It is so rare to get the three of us in a picture (I’m thinking we need to take family pictures before we become a family of four soon) and I love how this picture turned out. My husband is rockin’ a tan that shows how hard he’s been working lately, Caleb is actually looking at the camera, AND you can see my chin!

This one is definitely going in the family album :)

Have an amazing weekend folks, we’re off to DC/NoVA to spend some time with the fam and stuff our faces silly with delicious food. No worries, I’ll just work my ass off after baby A makes her arrival ;)

My 32 weeks pregnant update with Caleb

But since I’ve missed my little space on the internets so much, I’m back with just a few updates until I can gather my thoughts coherently for another post.

1. STRESS. I haz it. It all started with finding out that we were moving to Germany. Which of course, I’m obviously exhilarated about. But along with the excitement, comes the inevitable stress of overseeing a military move to another country while simultaneously trying to prepare for a new baby at the same time.

First, the hunk was to report in Germany the second week of July, which meant we only had a few weeks after this baby was born to move. Then some really high ranking dudes found out my due date and decided it would be best to defer the move…to September. Since we’re ready to get the hell out of dodge, we weren’t too happy about that and ended up meeting with these high ranking dudes to basically let them know that “we got this”. I showed up to the meeting with papers and spreadsheets and timelines of how we’ll have plenty of time to get the baby’s birth certificate, social security card, official passport, military no-fee passport, DEERS (defense system enrollment paperwork), medical physical, and EFMP screening all taken care of. I was prepared and effectively convinced them to sign off on my husband’s orders allowing us to get to Germany by August instead of September.

Three cheers for this small victory, yay!

But the kicker of all this? If the baby is late, we actually won’t have enough time to get to Germany before the hunk’s report date. Which means that he would go on concurrent orders, which in non military speak means that I would essentially have to stay behind with the kids while he goes to Germany without us until I can get all of our paperwork squared away. Honestly though, that’s not the part that stresses me out. I am totally capable of traveling internationally with a newborn and toddler and since it’s the consequence of our own doing, I’ll deal with it. What actually worries me is that essentially this will be one of those “open mouth insert foot” situations. I despise the thought of not being right after all that preparation I did for my presentation more than the possibility of being left behind with two kids.

Add to this that the husband has been working stupid long hours so I rarely see him, and we’ve been trying to get our house ready to rent and this is partly why I’m slightly stressed. And why I should probably go swing some kettlebells in my garage and eat a popsicle or three. Whoo.

2. NESTING. I haz it. I’ve been on a mission to downsize, organize, and DIY our entire house to get it rent-ready. So far I have sold our guest bed, guestroom night stand, breakfast table, our bed, living room rug, entertainment center, elliptical, our City Mini stroller, weight bench, all of Caleb’s old clothes that don’t fit…and a few other things that I can’t think of right now. Thank God for Craigs List, right?

When it comes to nesting, I’ve turned into a label machine whore. I’ve labeled all of our dressers, created a new household binder with everything labeled, a PCS binder for our Army move, and as ridiculous as it is I’ve even labeled our fridge. I know, I know, I’m ridiculous. The nesting urges come with a vengeance with subsequent pregnancies. Not my fault, I swear.

3. Pregnancy update. I guess I’m way overdue for one. Even though I’ll try to get a better post up about it later, my update can bascially be summed up as this: I am so pregnant. And the aches and pains are definitely strong with this one. I have felt like death on two stumpy legs the past week and I’m not having any fun. Zero, zilch, nada. I even go to bed before 9pm most nights just to escape the horrible round ligament pain, indigestion and nausea that I’m dealing with.

I love this baby girl already but once she’s fully baked, I’m doing everything in my power to evict her!

4. Intermittent Fasting <–Something I can’t wait to get back to after this baby gets evicted. If you’re interested in learning more about it, I wrote a guest post on Gina’s blog, The Fitnessista, and she did an awesome job of setting it up with an opposing perspective to prove that there is no such thing as one size fits all!

5. Along the same lines, hi and welcome to my new friends from Gina’s blog! I promise I’m a lot cooler than this post lets on…okay I take that back. I’m actually not cool. But hi!

6. An update to my hair conundrum. I’m a bore and ended up sticking with the same ombre color I’ve had for a year now. What can I say? I love it!

7. This kid.

It’s amazing how much more in love with him I am every day.

8. Posts I’m excited to share once I can get off my lazy butt: A recipe for an avocado hair mask, budget maternity style, and a FAQ about all things YOGA! I get a lot of yoga and CrossFit related questions so I’ve been slowly jotting down my thoughts to break everything down for you all, can’t wait to share!

And thus concludes my dumping my brains all over my blog…for now. Happy Humpday!

As it turns out, they were awesome! So clearly I HAVE to share them, it would be a crime not to haha.

Oh and thanks to everyone for the comments on my juicing post, I really hope that helped someone! Another topic I get asked a lot about the natural skin care routine I started with my first pregnancy and even though I’ve posted about it, I figure it’s time for an updated post. Particularly a post about this detoxifying scrub I use for the transition from winter to spring. This happens to be one of favorite homemade scrubs because it’s easy to make and smells so delicious that its only fitting I want to rub this all over my body, haha. I also love that it consists of ingredients that I already own in my pantry and that it’s super cheap to make. I’m a big fan of cheap ;)

Confession: I can count one hand the number of times I’ve shopped at places like Sephora. I’m just not a fan of spending money on beauty products. Once you go natural, you never go back!

So here’s what you need to make this Grapefruit Brown Sugar Salt scrub:

1/2 Grapefruit juice
2 tbs Epsom salt
1 cup Brown sugar
1 tbs Vitamin e oil
1 tsp coconut oil (softened)

The grapefruit is a great natural exfoliate and Epsom salt is a wonderful way to soothe tired, dry winters skin. Brown sugar is full of b vitamins and is a much more gentle way to exfoliate and pave the way for fresh skin for spring. And because I’m a huge fan of oil, I strongly believe every scrub should consist of a type of oil. Oils act as a binder for the ingredients and is the one of the best ways to hydrate and rejuvenate parched skin, hair, and nails.

Ever heard of the oil cleansing method? Or the no-poo method? There’s a reason why they’re so popular. Oils are basically a miracle product and can so wonder for your skin, hair, and nails if you keep an open mind and try them.

So try this easy scrub and let me know what you think!

I’m off to run, shower and then use this scrub but before I head out, here are a few of my other favorite tips for oil I must leave you with:

1. Add a teaspoon to your conditioner. Only condition the ends of your hair before rinsing to avoid a greasy scalp.
2. You do NOT need to buy those fancy pregnancy oils that supposedly prevent stretch marks. Most of those are made with concentrated oil with a ton of unnecessary ingredients. Just buy the pure oil an use that after a shower when your pores are the most open. It saves you money, cuts out all of the “fluff” ingredients and because its just pure oil, you can use it for a variety of things.
3. It’s best to apply oil immediately after showering when your pores are open and can absorb the most product.
4. If you tend to have dry skin on your feet, use a pumice stone, then rub the oil onto your feet, wait a few minutes, then place a pair of socks on to “trap” the oil in and sleep with the socks on over night. You’ll wake up in the morning with baby soft feet, sayonara to dry cracked heels!

And that’s all I have for y’all right now. I’ll be sure to post an awesome “recipe” I use on my fried ombré hair soon so stay updated for the rest of my natural care 101 tips.

Speaking of ombre, I’m thinking of going back to dark before our move overseas. It’ll be my last appointment with my favorite stylist before we both make moves for the Army :( Thoughts?

I know, I know…talk about first world problems right? Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderful day! Off to do some stroller running!

Since juicing has become so popular lately and I’ve been doing it for awhile now, I thought I’d give my take on what has worked best for us, and offer a few tips that may hopefully help someone out there reading my lil ol’ blog. Because I like being helpful like that ;)

So Why Juice?
As I mentioned before, juicing (read: NOT juice fasting) is just straight up awesome. Consuming raw, just juiced and fresh veggies is the easiest and fastest way to the consume the amount of nutrients needed to get our bodies to it’s cellular level. This helps to prevent illnesses and diseases and is a great way to up your daily energy. It’s also a delicious way to get our daily vegetable requirements in with one drink and you’ll even feel and LOOK better too. Who wouldn’t want that?!

Choosing a Juicer
So if I have you convinced to try juicing and you’re ready to hop on the juice bandwagon, you’re going to need a juicer and NOT a blender. Blenders pulverize food which leaves in the fiber and pulp when the goal of juicing is to extract insoluble fiber for maximum nutrient absorption.

The two most popular and affordable juicing options are the centrifugal and the masticating types. Centrifugal juicers tend to be the more inexpensive option since it just contains a small sharp disc with blades that spins the juice out at high speeds. Centrifugal juices are faster and easier to use, easier to clean, and again, is an inexpensive yet very efficient option. It does NOT provide as much juice as a masticating juicer though.

Masticating juicers have blades that chew (masticate) the vegetables to extract juice. Masticating juicers provide more juice and are known to extract the most nutrients but take longer to juice, are very expensive, and take up a lot of counter space. They’re also more difficult to clean.

Side note here, anyone else crack up at the word “masticate”? I can’t help myself!

I have a Breville Juice Fountain Plus which is a centrifugal type of juicer. I figured I’d only be juicing 2-3 times a week (since juicing can get expensive) so investing in a more expensive option didn’t make sense to me. If I were to juice more frequently, then I would have definitely gotten my money’s worth by purchasing a masticating type. As it turns out, I actually LOVE the juicer I chose. It is fast, easy, and simple to use and very quick to clean. It’s perfect for a busy family who doesn’t plan to use it as their everyday juicer and I also love that it’s not a huge eyesore on my counter. It was also only around $100 since I had a coupon and there was a sale going on, can’t beat that! I highly recommend this juicer if you’re a “beginner” and just looking to get started with something simple yet very effective.

When to Juice
It’s best to juice in the morning before you’ve had your delicious breakfast. Start with downing a glass of water with a little lemon juice squeezed in to jump start your metabolism, then wait a few minutes to allow your body to absorb the water before beginning to juice. You basically want to juice on an empty stomach for optimal nutritional value. Since juicing removes fiber and the body can’t digest fiber, the body doesn’t go into breaking down food mode which allows your body to conserve the precious energy it needs to assimilate all of the nutrients of your juice in the quickest manner. Whew, now say that 10 times fast!

Keep in mind that you should immediately down your juice as soon as you’ve juiced your veggies. When your juice comes into contact with air, the raw nutrients start to break down and the enzymes begin to deteriorate. If you’re going to juice, you might as well make sure you’re getting the most bang for your buck, right?

What to Juice
Veggies, duh! And organic ones at that! <–more on that later

I feel like I really had to make that point there because I’ve seen a lot of juicing recipes lately that have more fruits then vegetables in them. When it comes to juicing, not all juices are created equal. One of the main points of juicing is to get your daily serving of vegetables in, and since juicers are specifically made to break down the fiber and pulp in veggies for maximum nutrient absorption, you want to make sure you’re getting in more veggies than fruits. The enzymes in fruits are broken down differently than vegetables and since fruits contain more sugar, your body has to work harder to process the sugar instead of working on assimilating the more important nutrients from vegetables. Plus, too much sugar can do some major damage to your skin by breaking down collagen and elastin and juicing fruits is one of the fastest ways to overdose on sugar. But if you can’t stomach straight up veggie juice and need to add a sweetener, apples are a great choice because their enzymes can be broken down easily with most veggies, and they contain a good amount of flavanoids and antioxidants in their skin.

I mentioned using organic because most vegetables and fruits contain a ton of valuable nutrients in their skin and you want to juice your veggies with your skin on for the added benefit. By using organic veggies, you’re lowering your risk for ingesting pesticides, which are mostly stored in the skin. A good rinse will help remove pesticides, and peeling can also eliminate the risk but again, by removing the skins you’re depriving yourself of added nutrients.

When trying to come up with your own juice combinations, a great ways to start is to always mix a few root vegetables, a watery vegetable to help liquify the juice, a handful of greens to further help with digestion, something to add sweetness like a carrot, tomato or an apple, and a garnish for extra flavor like lemon, ginger, or parsley.

Now for some overall juicing tips that have helped me:

Some Key Juicing Tips

1.  Keep your juicer in clear view on your counter to remind you to juice 2-3 times a week.
2.  Designate a portion of your fridge for veggies that will be used solely for juicing. I like to keep my veggies in a strainer in my crisper drawer so the veggies are ready to be cleaned and prepared for juicing in the morning.
3. Prepare your veggies the night before so in the morning you can just juice, drink, and go.
4. Steer clear of starches like potatoes, oily veggies like avocados, hard items like squash, and mushy fruits like bananas.
5. Refrigerate your veggies, they juice better cold.
6. If serving juice to children, dilute with water by 1 part juice to 1 part water.
7. If juicing greens, juice them first. Scrunch up greens into a handful, place between apple sliced in half to get the most of your greens.
8. Clean your juicer immediately after you’ve finished your juice to preserve the lifespan of your very expensive, very costly juicer ;) If you’re in a hurry, just clean the strainer thoroughly, then soak the other parts in water for later.
9. Remember that juicing is NOT a complete meal and that I am not recommending juicing as a way of fasting. You need protein, carbs, and healthy fats to optimize nutrient absorption and the best way to do that is through eating your foods as a complete and balanced meal.
10. Switch things up every now and then. Occasionally I like to swap grapefruit for lemon, gogi berries instead of ginger, and etc. Just get creative and start to explore as you get more comfortable with juicing.
11. Have fun with it! Juicing is easy, fast, fun and so good for you!

And because I’ve been asked a few times to share my favorite recipes, I now present to you my top five favorite juice combinations. I made the recipes into a picture for easy printing if you’d like to keep it near your juicer ;) Enjoy!

See? Even my 17 month old loves “da juice”, or “ju” as he calls it ;)