4 Things You Do NOT Say To A Pregnant Woman

Carrying life is a joy... ok its a joy when the baby comes. The stretch marks, weight gain, sleepless nights, swollen ankles and such are a just thing you suffer through to see that cute little life that your hoping looks just like you. Along this journey you are hormonal may even a little more sensitive and do not need a constant reminder if your weight gain.

However it seems that is all people want to talk about. Try being married and trying to keep the sexy alive with a bowling ball in front of you at all times. Even the cute maternity clothes are still maternity clothes and no matter how cute you think you are someone reminds you that your gaining weight. No one has time for that. Its called growing a life. You are bound to expand. Hopefully you non pregnant women mean no harm so here is a friendly reminder to be sensitive to us life bearers. The next time you see a pregnant lady PLEASE refrain from saying the following:

1. You are getting so HUGE.- OK WTF is this about? We realize that we are growing a life and therefore our body is expanding. I posted this picture

 to my Instagram and someone said I was huge... HELLO I'm creating a life and I'm in my third trimester. Its no secret that I was not small before I got pregnant!!!

2. You sure its just one baby... again this is a dumb ass question. If I thought or knew there were two I would say so. This is just another way to remind me how big I am getting.

3.How much weight have you gained?.. It is none of your business. Nothing I say is going to be good enough. If I say something too small you will buck your eyes and tell me I look bigger. If I say a high number you will gawk and make me more self conscious.

4.Are you going to make it until your due date?... Why is it a surprise that pregnant women gain weight? We look in the mirror daily and since there is this thing called prenatal care we are weight often.

So let me leave you with this. As we carry this life our whole body is changing. Dark skin spots, hair texture changes, emotions are on a constant  roller coaster, and boobs that seem to grow as fast as our belly, and we are really trying to keep it all together. We don't care that you think we are huge and if you cannot refrain from reminding us of our weight just smile say hi and keep it moving!!!!

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Girl where you been?!?!?!?!

Hello out there!!! Is anyone still reading or I have been removed from your blog roll for lack of publishing? Its ok I would have removed myself as well LOL... So allow me to reintroduce myself and tell you whats been going on in my absence...

Hey I'm Toya, I recently (on November 30, 2014)  GOT MARRIED, discovered how easy and fun DIY projects can be, tried my hand at being an entrepreneur and opened a boutique, and jumped off the weight loss bandwagon after finding out I'm pregnant!!!! Can you believe it? If it were not for this kicking I'm feeling as I type I would not believe it. I was told due to me being overweight and having PCOS I was unable to become pregnant...welp looks like the Man upstairs had other plans.

So the line was so faint I tried to stay in denial but hubby was not having that. LOL!!!!!

That's right ten years, ok nine years and eleven months later I will welcome a new edition to my family. The baby is due 11/10/2014 and mini me will be 10 on 12/1/2014. Looks like the husband wasted no time in knocking me up LOL.

I have several post in cue so excuse the fact that there is no flow and as soon as the pre written post are published we will be all caught up. A while ago I wrote this post in an attempt to inform peeps about my blog and let them decide if this space is for them. Let us be honest there are billions and trillions of blogs out there. I cuss, like wine (currently going through pregnancy detox lol), and don't offer much on the craft side of things so if this space is not for that is fine with me. For every one else click around I hope you will stay awhile... since I'm posting again....

Just because we are so cute!!! LOL

My arm pits bring all the boys to the yard!!!

Ok so maybe my arm pits only bring my husband to the yard LOL!!! Just wanted to drop in and talk about my arm pits... no seriously... I received a Dove Vox Box from Influenster.

Let me just say that I NEVER pay attention to my arm pits until its time to shave, and this is usually done very quickly on the shower. However when I got the box I immediately took note to this:

If this is true and I'm shaving at least twice a week what does that really mean for my arm pits? Well I don't know but what I do know is I have officially switched to Dove. Not because I'm more than likely shaving my skin but because putting on the deodorant is like putting on lotion. It is so smooth, it smells delicious (yes I have been watching re runs of Mob Wives) and is last so long. Now after I have killed myself in the gym I am no longer afraid to #raisemyarms!!!! 

 I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes."

Wellness Wednesday- Anxiety

Wellness Wednesday is so dear to me, Im sure you cant tell because I haven't done one in a while but its due to my life being in what feels like a constant transition. However going through old post I remember why I started it. I wanted to encourage and educate others on varying topics related to mental health.

This week the theme of my clients has been anxiety. ENTER THE DRAGON... This post could be a book long so I will focus it solely on the symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder. This does not include other disorders such as panic disorder and PTSD. Please be mindful that the symptoms may manifest in others differently.

A. Excessive anxiety and worry (apprehensive expectation), occurring more days than not for at least 6 months, about a number of events or activities (such as work or school performance). 

B. The person finds it difficult to control the worry. 

C. The anxiety and worry are associated with three (or more) of the following six symptoms (with at least some symptoms present for more days than not for the past 6 months). Note: Only one item is required in children. 

(1) restlessness or feeling keyed up or on edge
(2) being easily fatigued
(3) difficulty concentrating or mind going blank
(4) irritability
(5) muscle tension
(6) sleep disturbance (difficulty falling or staying asleep, or restless unsatisfying sleep) 

D. The focus of the anxiety and worry is not confined to features of an Axis I disorder, e.g., the anxiety or worry is not about having a Panic Attack (as in Panic Disorder), being embarrassed in public (as in Social Phobia), being contaminated (as in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder), being away from home or close relatives (as in Separation Anxiety Disorder), gaining weight (as in Anorexia Nervosa), having multiple physical complaints (as in Somatization Disorder), or having a serious illness (as in Hypochondriasis), and the anxiety and worry do not occur exclusively during Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. 

E. The anxiety, worry, or physical symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning. 

F. The disturbance is not due to the direct physiological effects of a substance (e.g., a drug of abuse, a medication) or a general medical condition (e.g., hyperthyroidism) and does not occur exclusively during a Mood Disorder, a Psychotic Disorder, or a Pervasive Developmental Disorder.

This post is not meant to replace seeking professional help.  It is simply meant to be informative. Everyone worries about something weight, bills, children, and the list goes on. Anxiety is nothing to be ashamed of and if you or someone you knows is suffering seek help. You do not have to suffer alone.

Come back next week as I discuss possible treatment options for Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

Monday and its March!!!!

I know, I know, Im such a bad blogger. Thats why you need to follow me on Instagram LOL!!! Well if you haven't figured it out by now when Im not blogging Im probably not working out much either. This has been true until recently when I hit rock bottom.

To sum it up I found myself angry at other's transformation pictures. Generally Im not a hater but I was really pissed. Which then lead to me being mad at me. Who am I to hate on someone who is working their but off...literally. I was so disgusted with myself I joined a gym despite having ended the previous membership to "save money" I decided it was needed to save me!!

If you all dont know Val get to know her. She is doing a weekly motivational, accountability email thing that is very helpful. I will be honest and say in Janurary I read the emails every Sunday got all motivated and by Tuesday was eating crap. However in Feburary I started to take them seriously, and lost 5 pounds. If I want my own transformation story I have to earn it. SO here I am... AGAIN recommitting.

This will not be easy but to stop feeling stuffed in my clothes I will do this. I will be taking measurements this time as I have learned that the scale does NOT account for inches lost. I have started March off with a bang and hope you have too!!!

I had to get the hubby involved because its easier when you have support

this was my first official day back on the wagon... it was rough

What keeps you motivated?

Make a little money while going to school!!!

A while back I was contacted by Angela with Campus Book Rentals to do an informative post on their services and that of Operation Smile. My original post focused more on Operation Smile, however this time I thought I would discuss the text rental. I was compensated for this post. All information was received via the sites linked below. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

If you have been following my blog you know I have started working on my second master's. As a lifetime college student I have found this information about renting text books very helpful. So let me bullet point it for you:

-save 40-90% off of bookstore prices

-free shipping both ways
-can highlight in the textbooks
-flexible renting periods
-Each text book rental yields a donation to Operation Smile

Along with the aforementioned they have a new program called Rentback (where was this when I was buying books every semester, now I have online books). Rent Back is new initiative that allows students to rent the textbooks they own - to other students... which is awesome because it will make you 2-4x more money compared to what they'd make through single buyback options! For example that math book that is wasting space in your room you can rent it out to a student each semester instead of just getting the one time payment from selling the book back at the end of the year. One thing to consider is that professors do change the books sometimes so be sure to check into that and weigh all your options.

 

She cooks...???!!!!

I know I usually don't do this but I am experimenting with different types of post to see what my readers really want to hear about (as well as develop my niche, voice style, blah blah). It seems that my posts about my never ending weight loss struggle journey, crafts, my wedding, home management, and even this old recipe type post are a major hit.

I plan to spice it up around here (as time allows) and still stay true to the reasons I started blogging in the beginning.... all that to say this is a food post. Nope it is not healthy because when I made dinner this night I was off the proverbial wagon!

My husband usually does the cooking at my house. Perk to being married to a chef! However in his absence I had to dust off the old cook books... hey mini me and I have to live LOL. I was craving chicken quesadillas from a restaurant downtown and there were two reasons why I couldn't have it. One, its toooo far away from my house, the other is the never ending budget. I digress...

A friend of mine was like just make them they are easy. So that's what I did...

I grilled chicken on my George Foreman grill, and then proceeded to shred it as we discussed politics and making changes in the world gossiped like high schools girls and talked about the joys of being married.

It was really easy I used the chicken I had just shredded, shredded cheese, ranch, bacon bits, and quesadillas. I made varying quesadillas (she doesn't eat pork, mini me was apprehensive about the ranch dressing... blah blah)

 

I put all my ingredients near the stove because I can be so messy in the kitchen LOL

 

I placed the quesadillas in the skillet with minimal oil, on low heat, then loaded it up

 

 

 

Folded that baby in half, flipped it over a couple times so both sides would be brown and BOOM homemade quesadillas.... Of course there was salsa and sour cream but who really needs to see how much I ate when Im sure in a couple post I will be discussing my weight!!!

 

Oh and some ways to clean this up is to use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, wheat quesadillas, and low fat cheese, and SKIP the ranch and bacon.