Heart-Shaped Potatoes

Yesterday was pretty laid-back. We didn't do much. Daniel and I were both feeling a bit tired, and a bit mellow. In the morning, Brooke and I went to the park, and Daniel met us there a little bit after. He needed some time to himself, I think, to relax. He'd gotten up early to go help clean the church. But he came later. We played at the park with Brooke for a while. People were coming a going a lot at the park yesterday. Brooke loves seeing people, so that was good.

When we came home, we fed Brooke and put her down for a nap. And I put Daniel down for a nap, too. :) He needed it. And I worked out. For nearly an hour. It felt really nice. I think I'm back in my groove. I didn't get a workout in on Friday, because it was a crazy day and then Daniel and I were tired at night. But because I didn't workout, I felt as though I hadn't accomplished anything during that day, even though I was constantly busy doing productive things. It's nice, because I have a lot of variety in my workouts: I do zumba, yoga, weight and cardio training, go for walks, and spin. It's great that I can mix it up all the time and don't have to do the same pregnancy workout video over and over again, like when I was pregnant with Brooke. I feel way more in shape this time around, and like I'm getting stronger instead of just letting my body go "because I'm pregnant".

I'm also trying to be more careful about my eating. A week ago, Saturday, in the morning, I weighed myself, as I always do (Saturday is my weigh-in day), and I had gained 4 lbs! In one week! I FREAKED OUT! That's a lot to gain in a week. I had gained 3 lbs after our cruise, which I sort of expected because of how NOT careful I was in my eating that week. And I was okay with those 3 days of splurge. But I had not expected another big week of weight gain, and I was quite depressed about it. BUT ... I pledged to do better the next week (this past week). And I was doing better! A lot better. I made healthy dinners every night and had leftovers for lunch the next day. I ate oatmeal with agave and fruit instead of waffles. I cut out almost all sweets. And I was feeling SO good. Much healthier. Less heartburn. More energy. It was great.

Then ... I weighed in yesterday. I had gained 3 lbs in one week AGAIN. I was like, "Okay. Fine. I guess I'll have to start counting calories again." It seemed impossible that I could gain like that 2 weeks in a row, especially when I was so careful this last week. Well, I re-weighed myself a little while afterwards, and the scale showed that I hadn't gained any weight from the week before. I think it'd been having one of its glitches. I stopped freaking out, but still vowed to keep doing better. And then I worked out for an hour, worked up a really good sweat. I really want to stay healthy during this pregnancy. Both for me and for the baby.

Anyway ... wo, that was a tangent. After I worked out, I ate and relaxed. Brooke and Daniel woke up and we went to the pool. It was very fun to go with Daniel. Brooke and I have a good time on our own, but not as much fun as when Dadda comes. I wish I were more energetic like he is. It's hard, though, because I would have to keep up that energy all day. He is a bit lucky in that he can get away with shorter spurts of energy for Brooke, because he's away a lot. Anyway, the pool was really fun.

Daniel went running after we got home, while Brooke and I made dinner, using heart-shaped potatoes. No really! Check it out:

 We ate, put Brooke to bed, and then proceeded to do absolutely nothing. We watched a couple of episodes of "Murder, She Wrote" and cleaned up the house. Daniel also put up some shades in the kitchen window, which is so nice!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnddddd ... some pictures:

Our very first tomato from our garden. It was delicious! And now we're getting a whole bunch. We have some cherry tomatoes that we like to just pick and pop. So good!

After shopping one day, as I was putting some food away, I turned around and see Brooke just sitting on the kitchen floor, eating grapes. No biggie!

Brooke's handiwork. Talented, no? :)

Brooke, in her bathrobe that Stephanie Mitchell made. She looks so cute, all clean after her bath!