Mundane Thursday, but I got a workout in and some new makeup!

So far today, it’s been a “get things done” morning!

My mother-in-law left last night after being here for two weeks with us. I’m really blessed with an awesome mother-in-law… ALL of her daughter-in-laws would agree 100% with me! She’s so helpful, encouraging and fun to hang out with. There was lots of girl talk and laughing. But, everything comes to and end and it did yesterday after I dropped her at the airport.

Smiley boy this morning!

This morning after Moses gave me an amazing night of sleep (two, four hour increments) we woke up and hit the pavement with my friend and neighbor, Jen. We walked for an hour and a half and it felt SO good! I burned some major calories!! BOOM ;) I’m slowly getting back into my workouts, mainly walking hills and doing some squats/lunges/pushups. I haven’t started an actual “program” yet, I’m still researching which one I should dive into. DO you have any suggestions???

Burned some MAJOR calories today!

When we got home it was naptime for Moses, so I got some things done around the house, scheduled some appointments, returned e-mails, cleaned, did laundry… Normal housewife duties!

Anywho, in more exciting news…  I literally haven’t worn any makeup since Moses was born 8 weeks ago! I’m not the most amazing woman when it comes to applying makeup, but I love it. Some ladies (most of my girlfriends) can get all dolled up and their makeup looks professional!! I get all dolled up and look like a first grader got a hold of the makeup brushes. BUT things are about to change. I’ve been watching some awesome youtube makeup gurus and they are teaching me how to do my makeup and look good, not scary.

In honor of this “research” I’ve been doing. My hubby bought me some new MAC makeup :D Well, the truth is, I asked him to pick up the blacktrack fluidline eye liner and he went there and they got all crazy and in his words “were talking so fast and telling him, she needs this, she needs that” and soon enough the card was swiped and he walked out all confused on how he got bamboozled by crazy MAC ladies {They are pretty convincing.. And pretty}. Anywho, it ended up in a early Christmas gift for me. Hooray!

My IG pic of the new makeup! So excited to dive in!

I’m excited to try out some looks and look all cute for our Christmas vacation to Oregon!

I hope you are having a great Thursday!

XO

Hannah

Hey! I'm still here :)

This summer FLEW by!

The last month and a half, I’ve been spending QUIALITY time with my husband. Getting everything ready for Baby Moses {who is set to arrive in +/- 4 weeks!!}.

So glad we got to spend this time together, just enjoying the TWO OF US <3 Work was super chill, we ate breakfast and had coffee on our porch every single morning. Chatting and laughing with each other is the best. {Mushy alert} I absolutely adore my husband and I’m so blessed by his love for me. We’ve been married almost 7 ½ years and he still makes my heart melt! I have so much love, respect and honor for this man that the Lord has blessed me with, words can’t even express!! He will be the best daddy to our little man – from setting up the crib with me, buying Moses’ first outfit, installing the car seat, feeling all the baby’s kicks, and listening to the heartbeat every night, I’ve seen my husband tear up, laugh and express such love and joy for this little baby he hasn’t even met yet. It’s so wonderful and I owe my successful marriage to the Lord- He is our rock, our bind and the One who has taught us how to love each other.

Now that summer is over L ß Actually I’m not totally sad about it, it just means I don’t get to see the hubs as often, our schedules are crazy opposite, school is back up and running {And YES, I’m taking TWO classes this semester and expecting a baby… It’s going to be interesting!} Dave’s continuing in his pursuit to complete his nursing degree so his schedule is off the chain… And we are trying to get organized, prepared or whatever else you want to call it that we need to do before baby comes!!

Life is good though. I hate being home alone while Dave is gone during his long days {Wed & Thurs}—Blah, boring! I chat with my dogs, but they are always napping so it’s hard to hold full conversations… {Crazy dog mom- That’s me} So, in my times alone at home I’ve been trying to keep busy organizing our budget, creating schedules, trying out new recipes, cleaning ---NESTING---, looking into new health/fitness/wellness ventures {Because I need MORE on my plate ;)}. It’s nice to have such flexibility, but when you spend a whole month and a half with someone NON-STOP and then they leave, it’s sad. I tell ya, I love my hubs, 24/7!

Anywho, this is just a post saying , “Hey, I’m here” Still pregnant, still enjoying life. Trying to get back into the groove of {Fall-Time} before I have to get into a whole new groove of {New-Mom time}.

Hope you had a FABULOUS summer!!!

XO

Hannah

{Rainy, Lazy, Happy Day}

Well GOOD afternoon & Happy Saturday J

FINALLY!!  Last night marked the END of spring semester for me! As Alice Cooper sings, "School's out for Summer" WOOOHOOO! This means I have three months of happiness ahead of me, with no assignments/tests/homework.  Needless to say, after I clicked submit on my last project at 9:40pm last night, I crawled in bed and slept like a baby.

This morning I woke up to rain clouds. Normally I would be sad, but after the crazy heat-no wind-hotness we’ve been experiencing here on the North Shore, it was a nice change.

I popped right out of bed feeling, "free form school", and made pancakes & coffee for the hubby and I. We still ate outside on our lanai, even though it was pouring! {I refuse to eat inside in the summertime- no matter the weather conditions – We live in Hawaii for goodness sake!}  Sorry, I munched up the pancakes without taking a picture for ya—next time?

Our Lanai {On a sunny day}! Can't complain...

I sent Dave off to work with a warning stating: If I’m in the same position when you come home {Laying in our recliner with my Macbook perched on my lap}, don’t judge! Good news though, I got up a few times… Once to head to the bed to take a MUCH NEEDED & DESERVED nap, another time to find my bright pink nail polish and a couple times here and there for snacks, potty breaks, stretch sessions… Do I feel guilt? Nope!

I did paint my nails—BRIGHT PINK! {of course} Nothing says summertime like bright colors and pink happens to be my fav! Plus, the turquoise I had on my nails was barely hanging on, only by a few chips on every other nail! So sad and totally unacceptable... Don't these look better?

All in all, it was a great day! 

I did do some “goal setting”, for some that’s work, for me it’s excitement! Looking into what the future holds gives me joy and happiness. The life I live has been amazing so far and I know it’s not going to get worse. Sure, everyone has their ups and downs and if you know me personally—you know I’ve had both.

Life is only as good as you make it. You can let your past creep in and steal your current joy or you can learn from it, move on and be free! Writing out goals, to me, is a freeing experience— I can look through the past goals I’ve set for myself and see what I’ve accomplished, it’s amazing, empowering and motivating! It keeps me pushing towards my dreams.

I encourage EVERYONE to have a Goal writing sesh every week! Set goals, accomplish them and feel amazing!

Do you write out goals?

XO,

Hannah

We're Pregnant

Say What?? Yep!! It’s true! 

                                         We're Pregnant!

After 7 blissful years of marriage my hubby and I are expecting our first child. Baby S is due in October!

Let the Shock Sink in...

We found out on January 28th, 2013 and I can be honest-- We were surprised! Telling our family and friends, we noticed, everyone around us was more excited than we were... I felt bad, like I am the worst female ever! Aren’t you suppose to be excited, joyful, happy about such a blessing?? Where are my maternal instincts and when do they kick in?? Well, it took a few weeks.. Actually, a little over a month for the idea of “being pregnant” or the thought “we’re gonna have a baby” to sink in. It was a bummer, I wanted to shake all the negative thoughts, but they clung to me like a static-y dryer sheet!

Here are a few thoughts that went through our minds during the few weeks of “shock” after we found out... 

-We have NO family here, how are we going to get help?! 

-We still have TWO years of school here in Hawaii!

-Maybe the tests were false positives? Should we get another?

-Are you sure that's a REAL baby on the ultrasound screen?

-How are we going to afford this (on a student budget)?! 

-We live in a studio with JUST enough room for us and our two dogs, we’re gonna have to move!

-What will the dogs think? 

-How’s Grizzly going to handle the change? 

Dave: What about our trip to Europe next summer?

Me: OMG- I’m gonna be HUGE (Super selfish thought, I’m aware)! 

Dave: Did we even want to have kids? 

Me: NO! I didn't think so?! 

Dave: How did this happen? 

Me: Well-- When a boy and a girl like eachother...

Both of us: Oh My GOSH, we are having a baby!

These were just a few of the life altering thoughts frantically running through our over-stressed minds. 

I’m not sure if a lot of first time parents deal with these same feelings about baby/pregnancy... I have just known so many people who’ve wanted a baby and they try and try, so when it finally happens they are overjoyed and excited. I also think of my friends who've lost their babies and how devastated they were. I almost felt guilty for just "getting pregnant" so easily. In the beginning, we clung to the phrase “The Lord’s timing is perfect” and "He never gives you more than you can handle" Because we know the Lord is good, faithful and He ALWAYS makes a way! 

This IS Happening, Let's embrace the bump!

Skip forward to just a couple weeks ago, we started really embracing the idea :) Getting amazing long-distance support from friends and family, local support of friends here on Maui and because it’s starting to SHOW in daily life --> in my growing tummy, urinary frequency, aversion to meat or anything cooked in olive oil, crazy mood swings, unsatisfiable hunger, insomnia, heartburn and sleepiness. 

Today, I’m officially 12 weeks. There are still days every now when I struggle and think, oh no, what’s happening?!? BUT, there are WAY more days where Dave and I are excited about Baby S, we talk, plan and get excited about expanding our cool little family.

Watching my tummy grow is definitely exciting!!

:) Listening to the baby's heartbeat and seeing Baby S on the ultrasound are amazing experiences. Getting maternity clothes and baby blankets, birthing books and baby advice is fun! Receiving more LOVE than I could have ever imagined on FB, twitter, texts, Emails. I've had HUNDREDS of likes, comments and love from everyone and it makes us feel SO special ;) THANK-YOU

Hannah, How Are You Staying Healthy?

The truth comes out-- YOU know I don't lie and wouldn't keep my downfalls from you, just as I don't keep my successes from you! I'm human & pregnant, so if you want to judge-- Shame on you ;)

When I found out I was pregnant, I went Cray-Zy! I got super down and depressed, anxiety was high, stress was even higher. I put all of my healthy ways on the back burner and just ATE-- I did this for almost 4 weeks! AND in those four weeks I gained 9 lbs!!! Uugghhh, I was so disappointed with myself when I stepped up on the scale-- I COULD NOT BELIEVE IT! And the thought, "Oh I can lose that in a couple weeks!".. Doesn't work when your pregnant! The good part about the first 4 weeks was that I popped my pre-natal daily, so Baby S got his/her vitamins and minerals even though mommy was being bad.

Over the last few weeks I've gotten back on track and it feels Oh-SO-Amazing! Eating my veggies and fruits, getting my work-outs in, managing my emotions the HEALTHY way! YAY for me :) 

As my first trimester comes to an end, I feel like the 2nd and 3rd trimester will be amazing. I'm aware feeling ginormous may not feel amazing, but the choices I make from here on out will be exactly what I need to get through this and ENJOY it. I'm hoping to still stay on track with my weight gain even though it was cray-cray in the beginning. I really want to be the person who embraces pregnancy, my changing body and motherhood. I strive on positivity and as you can see from the beginning of this post-- Positivity was not on my side and the negativity brought on nasty side effects. The Lord is good to me and had blessed me SO much in this life, I know He's ready to bless Dave and I again and I'm excited to see everything come to pass!

More updates will follow!!  

xo,

Hannah

Finding Our Groovy Routine

Seven days since we stepped off the plane from our fabulous 3 1/2 week vacation in Oregon. It was amazing! I enjoyed every minute of it, but now it's REAL LIFE. Schedule driven, homework filled, salad eating, water drinking, gym going, house cleaning, bill paying, challenge driven LIFE! Whew!

I'm okay though, I am so blessed and really do love my routine {Once I find it again}. I think today was the day where it all straightened out and I finally thought, "I can do this, I have this thing {LIFE} under control!"

I definitely need a Brain-Booster and some time to sit and FOCUS on my goals and priorities, but that's for another day.

Right now I'm just taking in all of the beautiful things my life holds and getting through the next few days without losing it :)

I hope y'all are ENJOYING your January and I'll chat with you later!

XO
Hannah

Live Abundantly in Ephesians

I am a Christian. Christ is my first and foremost passion. As Christians or anyone really, it's so hard to get caught up in the things of this world! What we want others to see us as, our worth, our bank account, our looks, our stuff... All of these perishable earthly things. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against ANY of these things. I want to be worth something, I enjoy swiping my plastic knowing there is money in there, I love feeling healthy and having a body that shows it. What I often forget it is Who gave it to me. Who gave me these earthly blessings, my looks, my heart, my passions, my physical/spiritual wealth. Jesus did.

The world is constantly trying to trap us into thinking we are in charge of our own "beings" and the universe is what centers us, while yoga balances us and herbal tea restores us. PLEASE don't get me wrong, I enjoy yoga and drink tea like crazy!! But those things are not what fills me. The ONLY reason I am here right now is because of my relationship with my Lord and the ONLY reason I have the things I do is because of my relationship with my Lord. He is where I find peace, love, harmony, balance, restoration and my center.

This past week was a re-focus week for me. Getting right and remembering WHO I serve! Saying, "My Will for Your Will". There is nothing better. Period.

Having my father-in-law visit last week was great, he is a pastor and has a passion for Christ I have never seen in anyone else! Even though he is my father-in-law and has, over the years, done those "father-in-law" kind of things {I will leave it at that, LOL}... He remains my pastor and someone I respect very highly in my Christian walk. It was because of him 10 years ago, sharing his passion for Christ with his youth group that I began my {serious} walk with the Lord. So spending time with him this week was so nice and refreshing.

I'm currently doing a study through the book of Ephesians.

Do you do a daily Devotional? Tell me about it! Let's connect!

XO ~ Hannah

Sustainable Beginnings...

HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT!

I started a garden.

This news is HUGE! If you know me AT ALL, you know I am not the “gardener” type.

I grew up shadowing two beautiful women, my mother and grandmother. I shadowed them and embraced everything they stood for, except gardening. They both had/have flourishing gardens, have flown to other countries to visit flourishing gardens and know every singe name of every single flower/plant out there. A great afternoon to them is getting their hands in the dirt. This has never been me. I actually swore off gardening when I was a testy pre-teen. “I will NEVER EVER have a garden or buy a flower of ANY kind!” Now, I’m 25 and I’m going to humbly take back those words, re-open my memory bank and try to recall everything they spoke of when chatting about their gardens. They always said, “One day, Hannah. One day!” The day has come and I am so excited to get my hands in the dirt and make a garden, Vegetable Garden to be exact.

One of my New Years Resolutions is to be more “sustainable” in the year 2013. It’s so vogue right now! Everyone, everywhere is trying to be environmentally conscious and sustainable. I'm going to join in with the crowd on this one. When we moved into our little bungalo-style home. Our garden was full of grass/weeds/vegetables I will never use. So I decided to start fresh and pull everything out, except for the beautiful papaya tree. I LOVE papayas and I'm going to baby that tree until it makes me some tasty ones. And I left an amazing rosemary bush that I've been getting rosemary off of almost every night to cook.

Here's what my garden looks like now--- It's tiny & barren :(

My tiny garden plot...

This will SOON change! I have starts of different flowers and veggies (see pic below) and I've planted butter lettuce, Tomato plants, Basil, Cilantro, Cucumber, Peppers AND lavender. I'm really excited to see my little buds pop up and even more excited to have a garden I can eat out of!

Starts of something yummy :)

I'll keep you posted on my adventures with this garden and my all around excitement going green this upcoming year!

Do you have a garden? Tell me about it! Let's connect!

XO ~ Hannah

Blogging hiatus... September 1/2 way gone??

 Good Evening ALL!

So as you can see... :/ I've been on a little "dry spell" with my blogging. I'm definitely a work in progress!! Blogging doesn't take that much time, it's super easy and I love doing it, so why is it on the back burner?

Again, I'll try not to bore you with the excuses, "I've been too busy!" Because I haven't, "My life is boring!" Because it isn't, "I just got back from vacation!" Nope.  There are NO excuses, just haven't made time for this amazing blog. But, I'm BACK!

I honestly CANNOT believe it's already mid-September. Only three more months and our classes will be over and we'll be headed to Oregon to visit for the holiday season. Where does this time go? If you have a trick to slowing life down, please share :)

My brother and his gf have been here visiting for the last 10 days. We had a blast the first week they arrived. We got to do all of those tourist-y things we miss out on since we LIVE here on Maui. So we showed my family around the island. Drove them to some of our favorite beaches and restaurants. It has been fab. Working from home is the BEST thing ever!! There is NO way we could have just taken a week off, with no notice and spent days with my family if we worked at a "typical" 8-5 job! Feeling very blessed :) This second week, they've been on their own doing the "romantic island getaway" thing. Dave and I went back to real life... School, work, taking care of the property and enjoying each other. Tomorrow (Sunday) we are all meeting up again for their last night on this oh-so-Fabulous island. BBQ'ing, beach activities, volleyball, skim boarding, boogie boarding, laughing and enjoying their last hoo-rah here!

I'll post pic's next time!! See ya'll later!

xoxo

-Hannah