Sweet Potato Turkey Bowls

When I’m having a bad day, one of my favorite ways to put a little pep in my step is to get creative in the kitchen! Today, these yummy bowls were invented! I keep batch baked sweet potatoes at my house so I can easily make meals like this or just eat them with some pumpkin pie spice.

Peanut Butter Banana Nice Cream

This is such a delicious treat that REALLY curbs those cravings for ice cream without the guilt or sugar crash! Plus, it’s super simple. You know I love that.

What you’ll need:

1 cup of sliced frozen banana
1 tsp of peanut butter
mini dark chocolate chips (optional)

Yep! That’s it!

Blend the bananas in a food processor until they become smooth like ice cream. You can add a tsp of almond milk to help the creaming process if you’d like. Spoon into a bowl and top with drizzled peanut butter and chocolate chips or other toppings of your choice. Strawberries are delicious!!

This recipe is super easy and customizable. One of my favorite mixtures is frozen bananas, strawberries, and pineapple. It tastes like a banana split!! Get creative and share your favorite flavor in the comments ❤

Mommy’s Angel

“They told me to abort you, that you weren’t worth the pain. They said your odds were very small and you would just bring shame.
The path we walked was rocky, but I’d do it all again just to kiss your perfect face and cradle your sweet chin.

30 Reasons Not to Cheat on Your Program

So you started a new program. You’re feeling great and ready to kick some booty and crush some goals. Things are going great and then the motivation starts to slip away and the temptation creeps in. Do not give in!!! You committed to this and you are going to do it! Here’s 30 reasons why!

Dos and Don’ts on Bereaved Mother’s Day

I’m struggling with today. It’s bereaved Mother’s Day. I don’t want to be a part of this day. I don’t want it at all and I don’t want it for anyone else. I wish this holiday didn’t exist.
But I AM thankful that I got to be Caden’s mother. I am thankful I had him so I’ll take it. ‪#‎cadenstrong‬

Here’s some tips for talking to those of us with angel babies…especially today and next Sunday (Mother’s Day…we aren’t just bereaved mothers. We are just plain mothers too)

The moments of grief

I don’t have it in me. I don’t have the strength to think about how to eloquently string my words together or edit. I don’t have the ability to consider what I want to say or how to say it so here is… my first piece since Caden left. It’s sloppy and organic. I’m just going to let the words flow, let God move, and see where we go. 

Deeper than the waters

My sweet newborn son,
Right now, as the team is preparing you for your first open heart surgery, my heart is shattering into a million pieces across this cold hospital floor. You are still brand new. We just got to meet you. You still have your newborn swell and your pink skin is still so fresh with new life.

I can’t feed you or bath you or dress you. My heart breaks as you wiggle your tiny toes and stick out your tongue while you explore the midnight world. I don’t care if I don’t sleep just so I can stare at you, capture you, just like this because tomorrow you start your journey down a new road.

You’re perfectly formed from your tiny head with little fuzzy hair to your scrunchie nose, long toes, and cheeks you can kiss for days all the way back to your mighty heart. On the outside you’d never know you were fighting for your life with every beautiful labored breath.

Tears roll down my face as you cry. You’ve endured so many pokes and blood draws and lines and tests. I want to take them all away. I want to rip down every cord and machine and run far far away with you, but I know that this is your shot at life and you have so much to teach us, to teach me.

I know tomorrow I say goodbye and you’ll come back to me changed. You won’t move. You won’t cry. You won’t open those little eyes at midnight. But don’t worry baby because mommy is going to be there through it all. I’ll wait while you fight and I’ll pour my whole soul into your recovery.

Tomorrow as they wheel you away I don’t want you to be scared because I’ll be waiting and praying. My mama heart may break and shatter but my soul knows nothing but hope and pure faith that you are going to be a vessel for miracles.

My love for you runs deep, my son, but God’s love runs deeper.

Tomorrow, my brave and mighty warrior, you’ll fight and fight hard. You’ll show us resilience and strength. You’ll beat the ridiculous odds they’ve thrown at you. They can tell us your chances are slim or that having these conditions together over commplicates things. They can repeat over and over that you may not make it or that this is one of the worst diagnosis you could have, but I know something they don’t. Your story isn’t over. It’s just beginning.

Now let’s go show them what it means to be #cadenstrong

Dreading “How are you?”

I’ve been debating how to talk about this for a while now. I don’t want to come off insensitive or hardened, but it has really been weighing on me.

Oat Flour Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookie Bites

I’ve been craving cookies, but really didn’t want the sugar headache. It’s always nice to have an alternative so I got to work creating. These little bites are delicious and something I can feel good about putting in my body!

Hospital Packing (CHD style)

I’m a planner! A huge one! So knowing that I’m going to be in the hospital for such an extended period of time has me a little high strung. I searched all over, but couldn’t find a list that I was in love with to pack our bags so with a little tweaking and adding I’ve created my own.
A lot of these things are needed for a normal birth stay, but I also added things we will need for the extended stay! We want to make it as homey as possible! Hopefully this helps you and your packing woes! As I always say, it makes me feel better to control the controllable! Check out the written list below. I go into detail about some of the items that I have featured and where to get them!