Living in central New York is making me crunchy

This is the on going joke in our house right now.  One day Dan came home and noticed some organic coconut oil on our kitchen counter and gave me this "what in the world is this doing here?" look.  I have to admit I was kind of embarrassed that he saw it.  You see, I have been one of those people who roll their eyes when someone says they only eat organic chicken or organic fruit.  I would always die laughing when I watched this skit, and even though it's extreme, the concept behind them even asking their questions was crazy to me.  I've always told Dan even if we could afford to buy organic food, there is no way I would spend our extra income hitting up Whole Foods.

Then something happened.  Honestly, I don't really know what it was.  A mixture of a lot of things really.  I started noticing a couple of my friends posting some healthy meals on instagram that actually looked good.  I also began noticing that when I went grocery shopping I didn't take into account what I would eat during the day- as long as Jake and Dan were fed I would just eat whatever I could find.  During the day I would usually wait until Jake naps to make lunch, however at that point I knew I only had 1.5 hours of "me time" and I would quickly realize I didn't want to spend it cooking. So, I would heat up some mac and cheese, open up a diet coke and grab a couple cookies and head to my computer to catch up on social media.

Most of the food changes that I make in my life are weight related- this is the first change I've made that didn't have anything to do with that.  I wasn't gaining any excess weight and felt the need to diet.  I was simply convicted that I wasn't nourishing my body how it was created to be nourished.

Surprisingly when I started to look up blogs, articles, and recipes on pinterest related to healthy living and eating, most of them just talk about eating the appropriate serving of vegetables, fruit, dairy, water, and grains.  I know- it's the exact same thing they taught me in 6th grade health class. Mind. blown.  The sad thing is, I know there have been days where I maybe had 1 serving of fruit and almost no water the whole entire day.  I can't tell you how many times I bought a bag of spinach and had to throw it away because on Monday I had great intentions of being healthy at the store and then I just never made it a priority later in the week.

So to be honest with you I've waited a while to write this blog post because food has always been a sore point in my life.  Mainly because I love to eat.  Honestly for most of my life I have made my food choices based on what I am feeling/ craving at that moment instead of what is best for my body.  And really, who craves broccoli and carrots when there is leftover chocolate cake in the fridge?

Honestly, I haven't turned that crunchy.  Yes I've started to look into the benefits of buying organic foods and using things like coconut oil to cook with instead of butter.  However, that's probably as extreme crunchy as I've gotten.  For the most part I have started to change the way I think about food.  Instead of thinking and eating what I'm craving at any given moment, I have been thinking through what is best for my body.  When I was traveling in Chicago at the airport I had the choice between some awesome restaurants to eat at for dinner- Chipotle, Five Guys, and McDonalds were all in a row.  To be honest with you, it would not have been a big deal for me to get a burrito or a burger.  It's not like I'm never going to eat anything that I crave ever again.  I will guarantee you I will treat myself and eat something that I just flat out want even if there isn't an ounce of health to it.  But I'm just not going to do that for every meal anymore.

I've taken some pictures of some meals that I've started eating that are really good and not even that difficult to make.  Dan makes fun of me every time he sees them in my phone, but I take my role as a blogger seriously and this is part of my life, so I'm documenting it :) Please note, I have a LONG ways to go.  These are super basic meals, but honestly for me it's a start.  Eating fruit in the morning instead of two chocolate dipped granola bars is HUGE for me, friends. HUGE.

Shauna Niequist in her book, "Bread and Wine" says, "And modern life has pushed us into faux food and fast food and highly engineered food products cased in sterile packages that we eat in the car or on the subway- as though we're astronauts, as though we can't be bothered with a meal."  Shauna talks about a lot of other things in her book like how food creates community, (I gave a short review here) however I think she has a point about fast food.  We live lives that are moving so fast that we can neglect to take care of ourselves and what we put in our body.

So, like I said here are some small changes I'm making.  I'm not going to lie to you and say it's easy and doesn't take any work. I need to prep and I need to plan and I need to figure out how to do it with a what- feels-like-30-pound toddler on my hip who still wants to be held and see what I'm doing, all the while making sure he doesn't touch the hot stove.  That's why these changes are small, but it's progress.

Sauteed spinach with salt, pepper, and garlic with an egg over toast

Lunch one day- scrambled eggs, broccoli, and sweet potatoes- recipe here for sweet potatoes (ps she is pretty much my inspiration for all of these :)

Oats with almond milk, strawberries, and unsweetened coconut.  And please note my awesome slippers in the bottom right :)

My new favorite meal/ snack/ etc.  Avocado over toast- one is drizzled with olive oil and salt and pepper and the other has honey drizzled over it. so. good. Seriously I never would have thought to put these combos together!

Yogurt, strawberries, blueberries, unsweetened coconut, and granola

Fruit and avocado chocolate dip :)

I also have these energy balls every morning or if I'm craving something sweet (yes, I actually think the flax seeds taste good in them!) and try to use honey or maple syrup instead of sugar.  I try to have 2 glasses of tea a day with a tablespoon of coconut oil and I have tried to make it a priority to eat one avocado a day.  When I'm having a sweet tooth craving I usually grab a handful of dark chocolate chips and some nuts.   I also have two cups of coffee in the morning and if I've craving any in the afternoon I make some decaf- just trying to watch my caffeine intakes - being a stay at home mom has increased my coffee intake quite a bit!  I've also cut out pop and am just drinking water- it's amazing how much better I have felt by making these small changes!  I'll keep you updated if I find anymore recipes that I think are worth sharing :)

Weekend Updates and our Trip to D.C.

This past weekend was a whirlwind!  As I wrote about in my previous post, my sweet friend and co worker Marla passed away last week.  I knew from the beginning, when we heard that her health was failing, that I was going to go out for the funeral, we just didn't know the details.  Long story short, I ended up going by myself.  It would have been wonderful for Dan to be there, but it worked out well since it was a quick trip and Dan got to spend some quality time with Jake, which I know Jake LOVED.  He's constantly talking about "Dadda," and even though he gave me a big hug and kiss when I walked in his room on Tuesday morning, I know he was a little sad that Dad was already gone for work :)

It was was such a hard and good weekend all in one.  I was so thankful that almost all of my Trinity co workers could be there and we spent a lot of time not just catching up but sharing our favorite "Marla stories" and that helped so much.  Although it was difficult to say goodbye to her at the funeral, I am so thankful for her strong faith and the assurance that I have knowing I will see her again because of her faith in Jesus Christ.  I couldn't help but think about eternity and how this life we live here on this earth is but a vapor, which makes each day that much more precious.

Then on top of processing all of the emotions I was feeling, there was a blizzard the day of the funeral. The kind where you white knuckle it on the highways and it takes you twice the amount of time to get anywhere because you can barely see two feet in front of you kind of blizzard.  Dan started union negotiations yesterday so he couldn't miss work, and I thought for sure I was going to be spending another night in Chicago.  Someone told me over 500 flights were cancelled already as of 1pm that day and my flight was at 7pm.  I left lunch early to bear the blizzard and attempt to get on an earlier flight. When I got there at 3:30 they said I could try to get on a 4:15 standby.  If any of you know O'hare, it's not the easiest airport to get through, but I kid you not, I literally walked right through security- no line, nothing.  Then I got to the gate, they took me right away as a standby passenger and the plane left even in the blizzard.  They also put me on an earlier connecting flight but because of deicing the plane, I didn't make it.  However when we landed I checked my phone and sure enough it was delayed just enough for me to grab an iced coffee and jump on a plane to Scranton!  Seriously, it was not a coincidence I made it home Monday (and earlier than I thought!).  Such a huge blessing.

Now for the awkward transition... to talk about another weekend trip Dan and I went on!  My dear friend (and college roommate) Steph, lives in D.C.  She has always lived either in PA or Charleston, cities that are not that close to Chicago.  However she moved to Baltimore. just a couple months after we moved to NY so we are only 4 hours away!  Dan has never been to D.C. and I wanted to see Steph since it has been FOREVER so we made the trip a couple weeks ago! Truth be told... I'm not a huge history person.  I've never been really good at it (ask my good high school friend Sarah Finnegan) and looking at museums and buildings has never really been "my thing,"  but we mixed some history with some good food and good company so it was a blast :)  And Steph was so sweet to host us- Jake was definitely a little less than himself (maybe we're just hitting the terrible two's where we have wonderful breakdowns wherever we go... lol), however we all survived and even got to see some major sights and meet some of Steph's friends in the process :)  Here are some pictures from that weekend!

At the history museum 

We got to see the white house!  As you can see they let us get real close...

The Washington monument!

I normally would be embarrassed to say this but because I already warned you in my post that history isn't my thing I feel totally ok telling you that I forget what the name of this building was.  Dan will tell me later.. and then I'll decide if I'm going to update this caption or not :)

Jake was a trooper lol

Then Jake needed to get out and run around for a bit :)

Below are some phone pictures :)

Getting on a train!

These guys melt my heart :)

Can they please make adult sized sleeping bags like this?  SO thankful our friend let us borrow this for our trip!

It was SO good to see her!!

I joked that every picture I posted would be labeled as #merica ... I had to put this in at least one of my captions :)

A tribute to a dear friend.

Early this morning I received a text message that I lost a dear friend, Marla, last night.  It's hard to share the impact this news had on me unless I give you the context of our relationship.  When you immediately meet Marla she is so warm and kind.  Days after I started as an admissions counselor at Trinity she asked if she could take me to Panera for lunch.  I learned a lot about Marla during that lunch- mainly that we were very different.  Marla was introverted, genuine and sincere, and had such a mature walk with the Lord which gave her much wisdom.  I was (and still am to some extent ;) ) extroverted and loud, young and fresh out of college, and a relatively new Christian.  I still wonder to this day what she thought about me after that lunch...

When I transitioned to the events coordinator in our office Marla and I interacted much more and she later became my direct supervisor.   It was during this time we went from just co workers to close friends.  I learned so much about her life on our long car rides together to NACCAP events and through our weekly meetings.  Before she even found out her cancer had returned she had such a love for Jesus and excitement for eternity as she shared about what God was teaching her in the books she was reading and the sermons she heard at her church.  We also spent a lot of time talking about her kids.  I loved seeing her face light up whenever she talked about her boys- whether it was their girlfriends (and now wife :) ) or swim meets or basketball games, she was such a proud mom and cherished every moment she spent with them. Now that I have a son of my own, I can more fully see how Marla was their number one fan- not just in sports but in everything they went through in life.  We shared pregnancy stories when I was expecting and I'll never forget when I told her that I thought I wouldn't need much help from my mom after the baby was born.  She looked down at her desk and laughed and said that I should just wait and see how I feel.  Let's just say my mom sacrificially slept on our couch in our one bedroom apartment the whole week after Jake was born.  Marla couldn't have been more right.  And I'll never forget the joy on her face whenever Jake (or really any baby :) came into the office.

Marla always had visitors at Trinity.  It seemed like once a week someone was in her office just stopping by to say hello- whether they lived in the area or were in town visiting.  I remember thinking early on that there must be something really special about her, if all these people always wanted to see her :)  Her love for the TA's that worked in our office was also so evident.  She always wished she had more time to spend with each of them one on one and we had such a great time planning their yearly trainings and Christmas parties.  And no one in our office could deny that Marla was a great listener.  She probably could have been a counselor if she really wanted to- between Aaron and I constantly going into her office during the day she could have started her own little counseling consulting group on the side :)

And there is obviously all the little things that you can't forget about Marla.  Her laugh.  How she always texted me when she had leftover fries or half of her burger waiting for me if I wanted it.  And I loved how she always texted me when Bob, the security guy at Trinity, was around because I made a comment once that he was pretty good looking for a guy in his 50's :)  I loved how she always had candy in her office and was the first person to introduce to me the Tim Tam slam.  How she loved shoes and whenever she bought a pair that hurt her feet she always willingly gave them to me.  And she loved to dance.  One of my favorite memories of Marla is when we were on a boat in Chicago and her cell phone went off, obviously the ringer was some upbeat song, and Marla just stood up and started jamming to the tune and one of the workers/ "pirates" on the boat came over and started dancing with her.  And I will always remember how at every Sneak Preview Marla would ask to head over to chapel early so she could worship with the students and faculty.  She loved to worship- not just during chapel, but her whole life was about worshiping God.  Marla was such a joy to be around and her love for God was contagious.

Marla, you were so loved and will be dearly missed. I pray I can leave a legacy half as impacting as the one you have left on me and so many others.  What a joy it is for me to know that last night you met our Savior face to face, yet I am so saddened at the thought of how much I will miss your precious friendship here on earth.

"So we do not lose heart.  Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.  For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.  For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Binghamton Home Tour

We have had so many friends and family ask us to post pictures of our home in New York.  Since most of our family and friends live in the Midwest, many of them probably will never see our place in person!  However, don't let that stop you from visiting or staying with us if you do happen to be in the area :)

When we were looking for homes in New York, we looked at many different types of homes in a couple different towns.  What is so neat about this area is the character and charm of the older homes, which is just something you can't get where we were in Chicago (well, at least not in our price range :) ).  We honestly completely lucked out with this house.  The previous owner was a realtor and put SO much work into this home.  This was her forever home so she made changes like she was going to stay here long term- not like a home she was simply flipping to sell.  Unfortunately, her father passed away and she thought it best to move into another home so her mom could move in with her and her husband.  I don't even know the extent of all the things she did but I know some of the changes she made was painting, adding a first floor bath and laundry (I don't know how they lived here without a first floor bath!) repainting the porch, putting on a new roof, and creating an amazing garden.  

It has been a lot of fun making this home "our home," however I have learned a lot in the process as well.  Almost exactly a year ago (weird...) I wrote this post about what the real purpose of our home should be.  We were in the process of redoing our entryway in our first home and I found myself getting caught up in creating a home that "impressed" rather than creating a home that was a place that could glorify the Lord. 

Needless to say I found ANOTHER article that convicted me in a similar but different way.  Because of my type A, list personality I keep a running list of the changes I would like to make to our home.  Whether it's new curtains in this room or a new carpet in another room, it's all written down so when we have room in our budget I am ready to tackle the next project.  I would walk into a room and start to only see the changes that needed to be made to it instead of being thankful for all the ways God has provided for us to decorate our home exactly how it is- right. this. second. 

After reading that article I decided it was time to stop waiting around for me to fill every gap that I felt I needed to fill in our home and take pictures of what it looks like exactly how it is.  And I can truly say that I am so thankful for our home just the way it is.  Yes I still have my list of projects that I would like to complete at some point when we have the time and our budget fits them, but even if nothing else changes in our home we are so stinkin' blessed and my heart is full of thanks for how God has provided for us.

So, as if that wasn't a long enough intro to our home tour- here are some pictures.  If there are rooms that we painted/ made significant change to I have posted the before pictures below and labeled them accordingly :)  It was built in 1920 and the original homeowners owned a department store in the downtown.  In the dining room there is a place where a button on the floor used to exist that would call their maid/ servant who lived on the third floor.  There are also two sets of staircases in the home- one was presumably used by the owners which goes from the family room up the stairs and the other leads from the kitchen to the stairs which would have been used by the maid.  That's about all the history I know about our home so far .... our sweet neighbors Ruth and Arthur filled us in on the info :)

We added lanterns later in the summer :)

The above 4 pictures all show you what you see right when you walk in our home :)



Yes, basically this is where we store all of Jake's toys.  We hang out in this area for about 70% of our day so it just makes sense to store a lot of them here.  And they are so welcoming anyway, right?  And they totally add to the fireplace...(please disregard the bottle of Mrs. Meyer's cleaning spray that I left there....)


Our living room leads into our dining room.







Our kitchen :)







I LOVE our Lindsay Letters canvas!

The master bedroom :)  Across from our bed is our dresser which is being used as our changing table.. so not much to see there :)

Before pictures of Jake's play room

The other before angle of Jake's play room

The after of Jake's play room.  We repainted it white and Dan put in new lighting :)

We turned an ikea bookshelf on its side and turned it into a bench.

Super cheap and easy decorations for now.. we would like to add some magnet/ chalk paint to this corner and possibly some shelves :)

We also repainted this bookcase.  This was the wall where the flower wallpaper was in the above "before" picture

Jake's bedroom before

Jake's room after- painted, new lighting, and new curtains

We were going to put a reading "nook" in the playroom but we decided to make a little area in his room instead

Our hallway to our third floor before (needed some painting :) )

Hallway to our third floor after

3rd floor bathroom before

3rd floor bathroom after. Repainted it and the repainted the sink. Still need to take out that carpet...

These are our third floor pictures before

Jake looks so little here :)

Third floor after- new painting and ceiling fan.  In the future we will add some more decorations and hopefully change the curtains and lights

Maybe someday I'll share the story of how Dan and I (just the two of us) got this 300+ pound treadmill up here....