You may have noticed....

I'm in the process of changing my brand name over to Flirtatious Faith.   Why?  Well, honestly, it just feels more authentically me.  As a wife and new mommy, I'm putting a ton of focus on loving God boldy, following my passions and doing my best to reach some BIG dreams, to have a faith that can move mountains.  That's where the new name comes in. 

I've also just started a brand new online store called Flirtatious Faith that is full of ahhhmazing Senegence products like Lipsense.  I'm throwing a launch party on Tuesday and I would LOVE for you to join in!!  Haven't hear about Lipsense before?

Why should you join in on the party?

There will be a few giveaways, it will be a fun girls night and you get to learn all about some awesome beauty products, so I hope you can drop in!  Just join HERE to get in on the good time.   If your not on Facebook and would like some info, to place an order, or to collaborate, just shoot me a message HERE. 

You can also follow me here:
Event invitation HERE
Follow Flirtatious Faith on Instagram HERE


Hope to see you Tuesday in the Launch Party....Yay!!

Working Mom Tidbit: How to Prep Ahead for Stress Free Mornings

When I was pregnant, I did TONS of research using Google and, of course, Pinterest to find everything I needed to be an organized new mommy.  I found lots of 'prep-ahead' meals, freezer meals, etc, but nothing about actually preparing for the work week itself outside of the food choices.  So today I want to share what's helped me get organized for each week for those moms out there, who are like me, and just have to have some kind of plan in place.

Our morning routine is pretty set, because I need to be at work at a certain time each day and the commute can be a gamble if I run late. I had to come up with a morning routine that gave me time for snuggles, but also got us out the door on time. The best way to do that was by planning ahead so every night I take about 45 minutes to prep for the next day.

My Prep-Ahead To-Do List:

1. Wash bottles and pumping supplies.

Washing everything the night before saves a ton of time in the morning!  Pretty sure this is the biggest time saver on my list.  Luckily, my husband often takes over this task so I can head right to step two.  (Have I mentioned how awesome he is lately?  Because he sure is!!)

2. Move any frozen milk to the fridge to thaw.

If I have frozen milk from the weekend that I need, I'll move that to the fridge.  Then in the morning, I just have to put it in bottles.

3. Make bottles of formula as needed.

I generally send 5 bottles (4 ounces each) a day with Eli. (I'll be sending 6 ounce bottles once he hits 4 months.)   I fill up as many as I can with my breast milk from the day and then fill the rest with formula.

4. Check and Refill the diaper bag as needed.

I make sure all his essentials for school are packed.  Plus I put 5 or 6 diapers and some extra little containers of formula in there in case we have to run errands or something after I pick him up.

5. Check and Refill my pumping bag as needed.

I check the bag to make sure I have plenty of milk storage bags and put the freshly washed supplies into a large Ziploc bag.

6. Pick out clothes.

Here's another big time saver, because, if you're working with a new postpartum body like me, picking out clothes that fit and make you feel good can take some work. If I have to fumble with this task in the morning, I always seem to run late.

I also try to pick out Eli's clothes the night before too, because let's face it....babies have the cutest, teeny clothes and I could gush over them long enough to make me run late, but seriously.  Why are tiny clothes so darn cute?!

7. Pack Lunches

My hubby usually makes dinner these days and then we take the leftovers for lunch the following day or he makes a big batch of chicken breast and we take that for a few days. For our lunches, I just set out our lunch bags and all our snacks the night before (I portion out all our snacks for the week into Ziploc bags on Sundays so it's easy to just grab them each night.).  Then I make sure our ice packs are in the freezer and finish it off by putting our leftovers into Tupperware.

That's a quick rundown of how I get all prepped and ready for the next day during the week.  How to you get prepped to ensure your mornings run smooth and, generally, on time?  Let's chat in the comments below!

Baby Product Review: The Skip Hop Moby Smart 3-Stage Tub

The hubs and I purchased the Skip Hop Moby Smart 3-Stage Tub in blue before Elijah arrived. The tub's 27.5 inches long, 19 inches wide and 11.5 inches high.  It looked big when we got it, but Elijah's just about to hit 4 months and is already 26 inches long.  He kicks like crazy in the water and his feet always end up hitting the edge of the tub.  The tub's been a great size for the first few months, but I don't think it will last much longer because he's getting so long. 

The tub is supposed to grow with baby through three stages: Stage 1: Newborn (0-3 months; up to 15 pounds); Stage 2: Infant (3-6 months; up to 20 pounds); Stage 3: Sitters (6 plus months; up to 25 Pounds) due to a blue mesh insert that can be adjusted...higher when they're infants and then to a seated position when they're able to sit up.  We had to move Eli to the seated position early, because of his length.  Since he's not fully sitting up on his own yet, it takes two of us to give him a bath like this. 

Once Eli's able to sit up completely on his own, we'll be able to remove the mesh seat all together, which will be nice.  The seat is awesome in theory, but he always tends to slide down in it. I feel like I would love this tub so much if the sling was sturdier and was actually able to keep him from sliding.
  
It has a handy swivel hook for hanging on a shower head, shower bar or towel bar, but we simply drain it and leave it in the tub until it's next use.  

Overall, I would not get this tub for my next little one, because I'd prefer a tub where my husband or I can bathe him without assistance.  In this tub, I'm just way too nervous that he's gonna slide down under the water. 

My Postpartum Weight Loss Journey: Week 4 Review

Happy Monday y'all!  This week was a little crazy, which honestly seems to be the new norm as a mommy & wife with a crazy, busy schedule.  Thankfully I feel like we've got a groove going, the hubs and I are pretty good planners and I'm working hard to go with the flow when plans change or get shifted around. So here's how the week went...

Starting Weight on 6/26/17: 174 

Weight on 7/2/17: 171

Weight on 7/9/17: 168.6

Weight on 7/16/17: 165.2

Weight on 7/23/17: 164.8

Pounds Lost This Week: .4lbs  (Not a big loss, but hey...I'm glad it's not a gain!!)

Overview of last week: (7/17/17-7/23/17) 

Monday-  Can't believe it's already Week 4!!  I definitely indulged a little too much this past weekend, so I'm ready to kick it back into high gear with my food and workouts. Stuck to the meal plan 100% today.  Beau and I finished off the day with an intense workout thanks to Body Beast: Chest and Tris.  

Tuesday-  Stuck to the meal plan 100% again....not sure I've mentioned it too much, but I'm following the P90X meal plan.  I really love how super simple it is!!  I tried the 21 Day Fix Meal Plan and while I loved the variety of options, I prefer having basically the same meals and snacks so the hubs and I can prep more in advance and not waste ingredients. 

Knock out another workout....P90X: Legs and Back was insane.  Seriously the sweatiest workout I think I have ever done.  By the end, I thought I was going to throw up, but I got it done, thank goodness!! 

Wednesday-  Another day of sticking to the meal plan...Yay!  The only thing I switched out was that I had an organic fruit snack instead of yogurt for an evening snack. No workout, because I have been battling a cold and the hubs and I were exhausted.  I was seriously in bed by 7:30pm. 

Thursday-  Woke up not feeling too great....this cold might be escalating, but I'm trying to will it away. lol Fingers crossed it does the trick. I chugged some OJ this morning, skipped my workout, again...I know, and was in bed early.  Gotta feel better and make sure the little one doesn't catch it....even though I kind of think I actually got it from him. 

Friday-  Woohoo!! Made it to the weekend, still feeling stuffy, but at least I can breathe without my chest hurting....progress. The hubs and I are switching our workout routine around and plan to kick things into high gear again on Sunday.  In the meantime, I'm trying to let my body rest, so I can feel 100% again.

Saturday- Stayed on track with my food by eating oatmeal, a bowl of fruit and egg whites at the Starwood Cafe when we went out for breakfast. We ran a bunch of errands and then had fish for lunch at home. Later in the evening, the hubs and I decided to indulge in our LAST time eating out till we go on vacation in early September...Y'all hold me accountable to that.  No eating out for a little over a month....I can totally do it!! Anyways, we went out for Mexican food and I was sure that I had gained from eating out 

Sunday-  Stayed on track 100%, no eating out...Yay!!  We also got in our 3rd workout of the week: Body Beast's Bulk Legs workout.  I think this is the hardest leg workout I have ever done.  Plus, add in the Texas summer heat.  Pretty sure I barely made it through, but I made it, whew!!  

Goals for Week 5:
-Get 5 workouts in this week 
-Loose 2 more pounds
-Only indulge in 1 cheat meal

This week was a little off with not feeling well for a few days and eating out a little more than normal, but I still managed to see a small loss, which is good.  Hoping to stay on track better this week and to FINALLY hit my 5 workout goal for the week.  I've got this (And YOU do too!!!). 

Breastfeeding: My Must-Haves for Home and Work

When I decided to breastfeed, I, of course, headed right to Pinterest to see everything I'd need and found some great ideas.  I started with just a pump and milk storage bags, because, honestly, I wasn't sure breastfeeding was going to be for me, but as soon as Elijah arrived, I knew it was something I wanted to commit to fully.  Now, that doesn't mean I don't supplement with formula when needed, because I do.

I'm not a fan of the whole mommy war that sometimes takes over when chatting about how you feed your little one....so let's keep it light and I'll just share what I use for breastfeeding/pumping and what's helped me along the way.

I have two separate stashes of stuff.  One that has everything I need for home and another just for work.  I keep everything for work in a bag and make sure it's always stocked so I never run into an issue when I'm working.

For home:

Here's a run down of all the things that stay stocked at home to keep me on track:

Hand-Held Breast Pump:

I use the Lansinoh Manual Breast Pump from Target. I originally planned to get the Madela one, but this one seemed basically the same and was $10 less so I decided to give it a shot.  I love it so much I never use my electric pump at home or when I'm out and about anymore.  I take this one with me a ton and use it whenever I need to pump during the nights and early mornings on weekends.

Milk Storage Bags:

I was gifted a bunch of Philips Avent Breast Milk Storage Bags and I'm still using them.  I think they work great! 6oz is plenty for me as I generally only pump 2-4oz at each pumping session. I go through 3 bags a day at work and generally do I additional bag at home. The rest of the time I just nurse Eli.

Permanent Marker:

I already had permanent markers at home, but I'd suggest snagging at least two...one from home and one to keep in your work bag.  I used them to write all the info on my milk storage bags. Keeping track of dates, amount of milk, etc will keep your organized and ensure you don't use expired milk if you happen to collect a big stockpile.

Nursing Butter:

I was gifted a ton of Palmer's Cocoa Butter Nursing Butter and I absolutely love it.  If you're feeling sore, this definitely takes the edge off....especially when you have a little one that's cluster feeding.  I always have this on hand....one at home, one in his diaper bag and one in my work bag. Better safe than sore, am I right?!

Nursing Bras:

I've tired several nursing bras and my absolute favorite is actually from WalMart of all places. I'm generally Team Target, but my mom mailed me a bra she got for me from WalMart and it's my favorite.  It's thicker, doesn't look frumpy and it's super comfortable...an all around winner in my book.

Nursing Cover:

I actually have 2 nursing covers....one that's thick and one that's a lot thinner, but still not see through.  I much prefer the thinner one, because in this summer heat I don't want my baby boy to get even hotter than he already may be when we're out and about.

For work:

Private space to pump:

At my job there are two nursing mother rooms, one upstairs and one downstairs, which is great.  The only downfall is that there's no schedule in place so it's really the luck of the draw as to whether either of the rooms will be open at the times you need them.  Thankfully there are lots of unused offices, so if all else fails, I just make myself at home in one of those and it works out just fine.

Electric breast pump:

I use the Medela Pump In Style, which I was able to get FREE from my insurance....it did not include the tote so I just used a tote bag I already had at home that was large enough to carry everything I needed to lug to work for pumping.

Tote Bag:

I use a luggage tote bag I got a few years back from Cato. It's perfect, because it has a large middle compartment along with a bunch of pockets where I store milk bags, and everything else I need along with gum and, of course, my cell phone so I can catch up on youtube videos while I pump.

Gallon Ziploc bags:

I put my tubing, bottles and everything into a gallon Ziploc bag to keep it clean and store it in the fridge throughout the day at work so I don't have to wash the supplies between every use.  Doing this saves time, which makes a big difference in making my work day less stressful. I'm ALL about a good time saver!

Cooler bag and an ice pack:

This will help keep your milk cool on the drive home from work, which is so so important. You don't want to give your little one spoiled milk!  I used the Skip Hop GRAB & GO Double Bottle Bag, but mine is in a fun print....they have lots of cute print options! It's meant to hold bottles and comes with a small ice pack.  I switched out the small pack for a little bit of a bigger one and just toss my bags of milk inside.  I keep it in the fridge at work and then get it out before I leave for the day. 

I also use a few of the things I use at home when I'm at work, but I do have duplicates of those items so I can keep my tote bag fully stocked and have less risk of forgetting the essentials at home.  The items that are used both at home and work include permanent markers, nursing bras, milk storage bags and nursing butter.  I've got links to all of those in the section above too.  

What are some of your breastfeeding must-haves?  Anything I left out that you use or couldn't live without?  Let's chat in the comments!!

My Postpartum Weight Loss Journey: Week 3 Review

Goodness, this past week was an interesting one...Monday was pretty normal, but Tuesday I had Jury Duty and by the evening teething hit Eli HARD.  Crazy weeks like that can cause you to throw your plans to the wind.  While I definitely didn't get in as many workouts as I would have liked, I did manage to eat pretty well and still see some good results.  So here's a little breakdown of where I'm at:

Starting Weight on 6/26/17: 174 

Weight on 7/2/17: 171

Weight on 7/9/17: 168.6

Current Weight: 165.2

Pounds Lost This Week: 3.4 Pounds

Overview of last week: (7/10/17-7/16/17) 

Still tracking my weight loss in my FatSecret App and here's how it panned out last week: 

Monday-  It's the beginning of a new week and I'm stoked!  Today's our scheduled rest day so I'm planning to go to bed early and relax a bit. Our weekend was pretty packed, as usual, so a rest day is always nice!  

Well....I stayed on point with my food until we had a rough evening and decided to resort to UbberEats for some Mexican food.  They got our order wrong so we ended up eating cold Mexican food, but got a discount.  So not worth the cheat!!

Tuesday-  Today I have jury duty (fingers crossed I don't get picked). I brought my food with me so I should be good to go. Update: I didn't get picked, but I forgot to bring any utensils, so I ended up heading to Jason's Deli and got the salad bar and water for lunch so it was still pretty on track with the meal plan, Yay!  

When I picked up Eli from school things got interesting...I could tell my little one wasn't feeling that great, but I just thought he was tired. Then as the evening wore on he got cranky, refused to be put down or go to sleep and we pulled our first ever ALL-NIGHTER....whew, I was NOT built for those. HAHA While it was rough, it sure was nice to get nonstop cuddles and lots of quality time with him.  Obviously no workout happened tonight.

Wednesday-  By the time I was suppose to be up to start getting ready for work, Eli still refused to be put down and hadn't gotten much  solid sleep so I decided to keep him home and see how I could help soothe his little teething gums.  Around 11am, I gave him a warm bath with relaxing baby wash, lathered him up in relaxing lotion, put him in some cozy PJs and fed him a bottle.  

By 11:45am, he finally took a nap. I laid down too, but since he woke up to cry for a few minutes every 30 minutes I didn't get any sleep.  He kept up that cycle till around 4pm.  Then I got him up, fed him and cuddled and he went back in his crib around 7pm.  No workout again, because this mama was EXHAUSTED, but I did manage to score an ahhhmazing hour long bubble bath thanks to the encouragement of my sweet hubs. Oh and I stayed on track with my food, minus a small pack of gummy fruit snacks I had during my bath. I needed a treat after the teething craziness!

Thursday-  I almost didn't know what day it was this morning after the crazy week I've had thus far.  So thankful that Baby Eli was able to sleep so much yesterday and he seemed to be feeling much better this morning. Hopefully I'll be able to get in a workout after he goes to bed tonight.  Need to get moving again!

My foods been on point today thanks to Beau making my lunch and me prepping all the snacks for the week ahead on Sunday.  That seriously is such a HUGE help! 

Friday-  Today the hubs and I both have a 1/2 day at work, which means we get off at 11am and get to go have a lunch date just us two.  We decided on Mexican food and then watched the new Spiderman movie.  After our date, I went and picked up Eli early and we all went home to relax.  No workout tonight, but I stayed on track with my food, minus the lunch date. 

Saturday- Saturday is the day we always go out for breakfast, but for the last 3 weeks, despite eating out, I've made a healthy choice:  Oatmeal, egg whites and a cup of fruit.  Basically what I have everyday, except switching out my protein shake for egg whites. Stayed on track with my food all day, but since Eli decided to wake up for the day, I was exhausted.  After dinner, the hubs told me to take a nap before our workout and I accidentally slept till 9:30pm.....woke up and then went right back to sleep.  Opps!  (But my goodness, that rest felt good!)

Sunday-  We've started going to church Sunday mornings instead on Saturday nights to keep Eli's sleep schedule more consistent, so we were up early for that.  Stay on track with my meals all day till 3pm when the hubs and I realized we still had a Cheesecake Factory $25 giftcard that we'd never used and we were bored.  We loaded up and headed there....shopped around a bit and then had a yummy dinner and cheesecake.   We normally eat out twice a week (one cheat meal and then breakfast on Saturday), but this week we did three times.  Definitely won't make a habit of that!!! 

Here's my progress from pregnancy to now

Goals for Week 4:
-Get 5 workouts in this week 
-Loose 2 more pounds
-Only indulge in 1 cheat meal

So excited to see so much progress both in pictures and on the scale.  How's your progress?  Every little bit counts!!!  Let's chat all about it in the comments below!

My Postpartum Weight Loss Journey: Week 2 Review

It's officially the start of Week 3, but before I can kick it into high gear, I've gotta share how last week went....

Starting Weight: 174 as of 6/26/17

Weight on July 2, 2017: 171

Current Weight: 168.6 as of 7/9/17

Pounds Lost: 2.4 Pounds

Overview of last week: (7/3/17-7/9/17) 

Still tracking my weight loss in my FatSecret App and here's how it panned out last week: 

Monday-  Yesterday I prepackaged all my snacks, oatmeal and tea/Stevia so it's all ready to grab and go.  (One of my goals for this week already accomplished...woohoo!) I'm excited for this week, but there are a few challenges with being off work Tuesday and having a 1/2 day Friday. Time away from the normal routine seems to make slip ups easier, but I am determined to stay on track!

This evening I went to the Chiropractor....honestly, because I forgot to cancel my monthly membership so I had 4 more sessions I needed to use. The chiro asked me why I'm canceling and then worked on my back so hard that I cried on the way home. He was all about giving me the tough sale. He's not the normal chiro I see at the office, but man, I am not looking forward to going back! No workout tonight so I can rest my back a bit after all that, whew. 

Tuesday-  We had to run some errands so we had our weekly cheat meal by indulging in yummy hamburgers and fries at Applebees.  It was delish!! Due to the sometimes craziness of being a new mommy, my workout just didn't happen last night. Eli decided not to go to bed till around 9pm....he normally is in bed around 7-7:30pm. On a good note though, my back is feeling a lot better today, thankfully. 

Other than the cheat meal at lunch, the rest of my food for the day was on point.  Oh and I haven't had any Sprite in a week and 1/2....woohoo! Sprite became an everyday indulgence during my pregnancy. 

Wednesday-  Back to work today after the holiday with my food all prepped to stay on track. Last night, for dinner, Beau made some delicious garlic chicken so, of course, I brought leftovers from that along with some spinach and peas for lunch today...yum!! Oh and I weighed myself this morning and I'm holding steady at 171.  I desperately need to get some workouts in this week so I hit my goal of 3 workouts and see the scale keep moving. 

The hubby had to work late tonight so I was in charge of making our fish for dinner...I sure wish I could've recorded it.  Picture me running around the kitchen like a mad woman trying to get everything prepped as fast as possible with a baby cry and a stressed out dog howling in the background.  It was a hot mess, but we got it done.  Then I nursed Eli and Beau made it home just in time to prep the veggies and plate the food.  Man, Eli and I would fall apart without my sweet husband!!

Good news: We made time for a workout tonight too....I always forget how much I enjoy P90X till I'm doing it.  It was such a good shoulder & arm workout. Gonna be sore tomorrow!

Thursday-  Woke up this morning and decided to do a weight check and, to my excitement, I'm down another pound. (4 pounds total so far since Day 1) Yay!! LOVE how the P90X meal plan is so easy to follow.  Stuck with the meal plan 100% again...Yay!  The hubs made some delicious tuna salad over spinach for dinner.  He said it was super simple and it was so good. After dinner, we put Eli to bed and then played a card game and seriously laughed until we almost peed our pants.  Nights like that are the BEST!  No workout, but we sure had fun together.

Friday-  Decided to check my weight again this morning and BOOM!!! I'm down another pound and I've hit 169....officially in the 160's and inching closer to my goals each day. AND when I put on my jeans this morning, they definitely have a gap and are starting to get loose in the tummy. Pre-pregnancy I was a size 4 so buying these size 12 jeans, a size I hadn't worn in over 6 years, was humbling to say the least. I know sizes don't matter and all that jazz, but, to be completely honest, getting back into the single digit sizes excites me.  I feel my best when I feel fit. With all these little successes lately, I feel much more confident in my ability to get fit again. Yay!!!

Tonight the hubs and I did the Body Beast Leg workout and my goodness, it was only like 35 minutes, but I seriously thought my legs were going to fall off. It was incredibly intense....especially since I have no worked out this hard since about a year ago. Whew!!  But we got through it and it sure felt good after we were done. 

To top off the start to the weekend, Baby Eli decided to sleep for like 13 hours....that's the longest he's ever slept.  It was pretty awesome!!

Saturday- The hubs and I had a super busy day running errands (Saturday is our 'get things done' day.) We went out for breakfast and I stuck to the meal plan: Oatmeal with strawberries & blueberries on top and egg whites. After breakfast we ran errands, got groceries and headed home. The hubs made chicken and veggies for lunch and then we had fish and veggies for dinner. We were planning to go to church that night, but somebody was tired and ready for bed so we got him to sleep and then went ahead and worked out instead.  

For our workout, we did P90X: Chest & Back, plus Ab Ripper. I did waaaay more push ups and pull ups than I was able to do last week, so that was awesome!  It was a tough workout, but it felt so good to feel the progress. 

Sunday-  We got up early, had breakfast and headed to church.  Stuck to the meal plan 100% again (Woohoo!). When I say my legs were sore this day, that's a complete understatement.  I felt like I had stiff robot legs and EVERY muscle in my legs was on fire.  Whew, it was tough. To make matters more interesting....it was cardio day. AHH!!  Beau and I did P90X Plyometrics with tons of squats and lunges. In the beginning, I thought I was going to be crawling back in the house, but by the end the workout had managed to help lessen the soreness in my legs a ton.  Thank goodness!!  Yay for getting in 4 workouts this week and crushing my goal of 3! 

Goals for Week 3:

-Knock out 5 workouts. (Planning to do them Tues, Weds, Thurs, Sat & Sun)
-Only indulge in 1 cheat meal. (Planning on saving it for Parent's Night Out on Friday)
-Loose 2 more pounds.

Last week went pretty darn well and I'm hoping this week will keep that going. I have jury duty one day and then we have Parent's Night Out on Friday, but I should be able to stay on track regardless.  Plus, Beau and I just planned our first vaca as a family of 3....we're road tripping in September, so I wanna get as close to my goal as I can by then.  Even more motivation to stay on track!! 

How was your week last week?  Hit any goals or see progress?  Let's chat in the comments!