Happy Monday!  I am linking up with Katie for my weekend recap!

GaGa was in town for a long weekend (Russell's mom), so our weekend was full of much needed family time.  Ryan enjoyed every minute with his GaGa, and we enjoyed every minute of having an extra set of hands around here to wrangle a toddler around.

Friday

GaGa watched Ryan all day while Russell and I worked, so Ryan got some excellent time with her.  When we got off, Russell cut the grass and Ryan was absolutely glued to the front door while Buddy hovered in the kitchen while GaGa whipped up a yummy meal.

Amazed at Dada's grass cutting skills.

Someone please drop some food for me!

Friday Favorites | 8.21.15

Thanks to Katie and Heather for the link-up!

I have been looking forward to today since Monday, I'm not going to lie.  Work is insanely busy (which is a very good thing) but life outside of work has been the same.  I am hoping to relax and have some fun this weekend since Russell's mom is in town to visit.  

In honor of Friday, here are my #fridayfavorites for the week!

It's Friday

That in itself is a favorite of my week.

Thinking Out Loud

I want to give a shout out to Amanda @ RunningwithSpoons for the link up.

Its #thinkingoutloud Thursday!

I am a little on the fritz today, I am not going to lie.  There is a lot going on in this large dome of mine that I am trying to wrap my head around.  There are some large opportunities in the works with my little family that have my mind going in 20 different places.  When your Type A, that happens...a lot!  

Russell has been approached to interview for a position with his company, that if he got an offer and we accepted, would have us relocating.  While the opportunity is awesome, my Type A has stepped in and my head is reeling with questions and I can't sleep.  I am trying to over prepare myself for all possibilities.  The relocation would put us closer to family but the job search for me would be very hard as there are not as many opportunities in my field.  I am trying not to think hard about it because there could be no offer, but if you are anything like me, the over analyzing has already begun.

Hopefully, I can share the end result with you within the next two weeks since his interview isn't even until next week.  

~~~~~

On another note, its #thinkingoutloud Thursday!

1. H&M opened up five minutes from me!  But, the lines have been ridiculous so that means you won't find me in there for at least three weeks.  Do you do that?  Do you wait until the excitement is over before you shop somewhere, or do you dive right no in?

This looks like a nightmare to me.

Ambronite | The New Super Meal - I Gave it a Try

I have always been a big fan of quick and easy.  Quick and easy meals = check! Quick and easy makeup routines = check, check! Quick and easy workouts =  check x infinity!

When it comes to quick and easy snacks, I usually grab anything I can get my hands on that I can eat on-the-go.  I try to eat healthy and be mindful, but that isn't always the case.  I can admit that.  When work brings in cupcakes, how can you say no???!!

But, I still try to be sensible and eat very healthy.  As a family, we eat 90% organic foods and try to have an overall very, very well balanced diet.  

I was recently introduced to Ambronite, a company that offers an organic drinkable meal that is perfect on-the-go.  I jumped at the chance to try this organic option to use as a snack.

The drinkable "Super Meal" comes in small bags that are perfect to have at your home, office, in your bag, etc.  Each bag contains one full mean (500 cal) of all of your essential nutrients.  It is free of anything artificial and mixes really well with water, juices, and blended in a smoothie.  Just one meal contains 20 organic whole food ingredients with 32% of fats, 44% of carbohydrates, and 24% of protein.

Source: Ambronite.com

I decided to use only half of each packet at a time to make it more of a snack option for me.  That way, the calorie count was lower.  I don't drink a lot of juices, so I decided to try mine mixing with water, and then with almond milk.  I always have a snack during the mid afternoon, so this was a very easy option for me for my afternoon snack option at work.

Weekend Recap | We ate Chipotle...duh!

Happy Monday!  I am linking up with Katie for my weekend recap!

The weekend went by too fast...the usual, but the good news is that I am feeling much better.  I was even able to squeeze in a few workouts, for which my body is now paying for.  A few years back, I was a certified Turbo Kick instructor so I have all of my instructor DVDs still.  I did one of my Turbo Kick workouts last night (first time in forever) and my obliques are crying today.

I forgot how much fun Turbo Kick was!  (And how much of an ab workout you get!)

Here is a recap from our weekend:

Saturday (because nothing happened Friday night)

Ryan spent the morning with playing with his favorite app Peekaboo Barn and Dada, while Mama got her hair all spruced up at the salon.

Friday Favorites | 8.14.15

Thanks to Katie and Heather for the link-up!

I couldn't be more ready for the weekend than I am today.  After a tough week (you can read about it here), I am in need of my sweatpants, a couch, and relaxation.

Things have definitely gotten better for me.  I can move more freely around without pain.  I attempted a 30-min run last night and while the run felt good, afterwards I was wiped and my stomach was sore.  I didn't mean to push myself too much but I needed to gauge where I was at.  Now I know.  Just a few more days of rest and I should be back in business. (Fingers crossed.)

In gearing up for the weekend, here are some of my #fridayfavorites from the week:

Scripture

A friend of mine on Facebook posted this image of some scripture he read that day, and it was really exactly what I needed to read this week.  

Could have been worse...

I want to give a shout out to Amanda @ RunningwithSpoons for the link up.

Its #thinkingoutloud Thursday!

This week has been hit or miss with me here on the blog and I apologize if you were looking for some dag on good content.  

I figured I would take today to catch you up to speed on what's been going on.  Sorry if this is pretty text heavy.

Sunday night, shortly after dinner time I started having extreme stomach pain and it reminded me of a contraction (just higher up).  Nausea followed soon after, and I spent much of the night on the couch.  I honestly tried to convince myself it was just really bad gas pains or something and that I would be better by the morning.  I tried to "sleep it off" but there was no sleeping to it.  The pain was ever constant and by morning it had migrated to below my belly button.  

Monday morning, it was even more intense and it hurt so bad when I pressed on the right, center, and left side of my lower stomach.  More so on my right, so I feared appendicitis.  I headed straight to an Urgent Care center where they sucked up my $60 copay and told me they couldn't do any tests for me, and needed to head to the ER.

Side note:  Can I have a refund if you did absolutely nothing for me??

Went to the ER, already dreading my ER bills that will follow, and they did an EKG, blood work, and CT scan.  Everything came back clear except for the fact that I had fluid in my pelvic area.  Without doing an ultrasound, they said I probably had ovarian cysts and to follow up with my OBGYN.  They sent me home with pain meds and really no other information.

I called my OBGYN as soon as I got home but the soonest they could see me was Wednesday (yesterday) morning.  Here I was in a crazy amount of pain, and I had to wait two days?  One word = frustrating.

I did try to be superwoman and come in to work Tuesday, but it wasn't easy.  And by yesterday, I was the first one in the doctor's office.  After an ultrasound, they confirmed what was going on.  I had an ovarian cyst that ruptured and that leaked a lot of fluid in the area and that was what was causing my pain.  But while they were looking around, they found out I had a lot of cysts all clumped together on both ovaries.  The doctor told me it looked like the clumps of cysts that they see on someone with PCOS.  Great.

So, they are treating me with birth control.  When you have PCOS, they give you birth control as there is medicine in the pill that can shrink and help get rid of the cysts.  Since Russell and I want to start for baby number two, semi-soon, they have me on the pill to try and get rid of the cysts so that they will be gone once we are ready to start becoming a baby making machine.  (PCOS can cause you to have a hard time getting pregnant because of the number of cysts.)  

Hopefully the pain will go away in a few more days, once my body absorbs the fluid again, and then I can get back to normal activities.  While I hated getting this news, I am grateful that it wasn't appendicitis, I didn't need surgery, and I could still get pregnant once the pill kicks the cysts to the curb..... it could have been worse.

And just in case you were wondering why I wasn't on the pill....  

For the last couple of years, I have suffered from a very low libido, exhaustion, mood issues, etc. It was very bad, and I was very affraid at how it may affect my marriage if I didn't seek answers. It was also affecting my self esteem.  I talked to by OBGYN back at my yearly check up, we did some blood work, and found out my testosterone levels were very low.  So, I have been getting monthly testosterone injections (which have helped me TREMENDOUSLY)!  Birth control pills lower your testosterone, and when you already have very low levels, like myself, you have zero libido, always tired, moody, etc.  I got off the pill to help with that and we were using a condom instead.  (If this is tmi for you, sorry... but some may find this helpful so I want to share my experience.)

Since I have to go back on the pill, I am still getting my injections, they may just have to increase the dosage a little.  I will have to stop the injection (and of course the pill) once we are ready to start trying for a baby. I cannot get injections while pregnant as that could cause issues if we were to be pregnant with a girl.

The doc did say, I have had PCOS for a long time but never had any issues because I had always been on the pill, so it helped keep me from having symptoms, and the injections (and being off the pill) just aggravated them.  I had a very easy time getting pregnant with Ryan (second month of trying) because the pill kept me from having cysts at that time.

I only hope and pray we can have an easy time when we are ready for baby number two, but my priority right now, is to get myself better.

I know I am not the only one that has ever had these issues, but I wanted to share my experiences as we are a blogging community.

Disclaimer:  I am not a doctor, nor am I trying to be (or smart enough).  If you relate, before you self diagnose, please consult your physician.

XOXO,

Sherri

Weekend Recap | A day late thanks to the ER

My weekend recap is coming at you a day late thanks to the ER.  Due to some severe stomach pains that started Sunday night, I had to go to the ER yesterday and spending my day there being poked and prodded.  Good news: no appendicitis, bad news: they aren't sure the real issue, it may be ovarian cysts so I have to follow up with my OB to verify and go from there.

I was nauseous, couldn't walk standing up straight, extreme pain to the touch in my lower tummy...no fun at all.  I am hopped up on some pain meds and anti inflammatory's so, while the pain is not as bad today, I am hoping to get real answers soon.

On another, much more positive note, here was my weekend recap:

Saturday

Russell was heading home from being away, so Ryan and I spent the day running errands and then had a park date.

Major bed head

He stopped to take a break and look at the trucks going by.

And then picked up where he left off.

Danger is his middle name.

Walking UP the slide...like a boss

He was too big for his britches and thought he could master the big boy slide...
obviously, it was a little much hahaha.  

Friday Favorites: 8.7.15

Thanks to Katie and Heather for the link-up!

It's Friday!  It's time to grab my girls, head out in town, stay out til the early AM and partay!  Nah, who am I kidding!!!!  Had you fooled didn't I? 

It's actually more like: it's time to kick back in my pajamas, binge watch Netflix tonight with a glass of wine, and make it to bed my 11 PM if I am feeling dangerous :)

Oh, how life changes when you are married and a mommy.  I am not going to lie, I LOVE my Friday nights now, compared to wayyyy back in my other life.

Here are some of my #fridayfavorites from this week:

This weight bench from Zulily

I know what I am getting Ryan when he turns three!!!  Isn't this thing awesome!  We have an adult version in our garage and I think it would be so cute for Ryan to follow his daddy and do his little toddler weight lifting version. Ryan sees the both of us working out on the regular and he definitely has picked up some of my small weights lately and pretended to do his own lifting.  Oh my little Schwartzenegger!  I would totally buy it now, but think I will wait maybe one more year.  But come on, HOW ADORABLE IS THIS!!??

Ryan's Favorites: iPad Apps for Toddlers

I want to give a shout out to Amanda @ RunningwithSpoons for the link up.

Its #thinkingoutloud Thursday!

As most parents know, babies and young toddlers usually have the attention span of a gnat.  Getting them to even sit still to eat is a challenge.  As Ryan has gotten a bit older, I have been able to see a slight change in him and he has been able to sit for longer periods to read a book and watch a favorite show of his.  

While I don't encourage a ton of screen time for Ryan (I would rather him play with toys), there are times we are at a restaurant, plane ride, car ride, or waiting room somewhere, that I desperately need entertainment for him.  The below apps are some of our favorites that are on our iPad or iPhone right now.

Peekaboo Barn

Ryan loves animals and peekaboo, so combine the two and you have this app.  Ryan loves touching the barn door and being surprised at which animal it shows.  He has even gotten very good at saying the animal's name and mimicking the sound the animal makes.  This is a tried and true favorite that he has been playing with since he was around 12 months old.  It does cost $1.99, but it's totally worth it.

No PDA allowed thanks to Officer Ryan

That picture, folks, is my son firmly planting his tiny body between momma and dada since we are not allowed to be affectionate.  

Weekend Recap | I know who will be "Class Clown"

Happy Monday!  I am linking up with Katie for my weekend recap!

It's August and I can't believe it!  This summer has flown by big time and fall is right around the corner.  (Which is not a bad thing.)

Here are some highlights from the weekend:

Friday

We dined on Chipotle....duh!  Ryan was exceptionally happy about this meal and loved dipping his quesadilla in his guacamole.  You are your mother's child Ryan!