I fear jinxing myself when I say…today went SO well!!! Things felt eerily easy and like I have done the 2 kiddo thing my entire life. I guess when life has to go on, you just make it happen. It also helps to have two wonderful children to call your own. I am truly blessed!

I do think being proactive on some things helped a lot as well. I focused on establishing some sort of basic routine the past 2 weeks to help ease me in. I prayed regularly through the day for God to help me approach each moment with patience, grace, and love. And we set up an old rocking chair we bought on consignment a few years ago in the play room.

May not be the most attractive or comfortable thing, but it keeps Makenzie feeling like I’m actively there with her even when feeding baby B. She used to flip when I would have to go into the living room to feed him. Today, she was happy as usual.

Despite the day going so smoothly, I still was ready to head out for some “me time”. I went to the gym for a quick workout. My first official post-baby workout!

I visited a treadmill with a magazine friend for an easy walk. I ended up with 2 miles walked around 3.8-4.0 mph and 3.0 incline.

That walk felt like one of the best workouts ever. Although I did eye the free weights area longingly during my session. I’m holding off on those for a little longer though. I have to ease back in, after all. Plus, its fun having workouts to look forward to. Tell me I”m not the only one salivating at the thought of lifting a barbell again.

Can tomorrow be this fabulous? I sure hope so! But I have learned it is best not to have expectations and just take each day as it comes. In fact, a very wise woman mentioned that exact thing to me today. Speaking of which – all of you are so wise with your healthy habits ideas. Some of my personal favorites I always strive for:

• Make small changes. (Theresa @ Active Eggplant)
• Writing things down or making lists of goals. (Katy @ Monsterproof)
• Get 1 serving of fruit or veggie at each meal. (Therese @ Therese and Ross)
• Plan out meals/prep food for easy access. (Mellissa @ A Fit And Spicy Life)
• Don’t get obsessive. (Sarah @ Yoga for Breakfast)
• Make food you love and have leftovers. (Nicole @ Prevention RD)
• Think about how good it feels. (Caree @ Fit-Mama)
• Do something consistently. (Felicia @ Taste of Health with Balance)
• Look at the bigger picture. (Christin @ Purple Bird Blog)

Thanks again for sharing! All great ones to put into practice.

Question of the Evening – What is your favorite low key way to exercise? Or how do you ease back into workouts after time off?

Morning/happy early afternoon, friends! Catching up from the weekend?

• Sitting Pretty – importance of prettying up sometimes
• A Bit Late to the Game – movie nights to catch up with popular movies
• Get Me Out Of Here – getting out of the house and sharing some uncertainty
• New Weekly Series – FFF Features
• Self-Love Reflection of the Week – Gifts of the Body

As you may recall from last night’s post, Peter returned to work today. That means I am spending time figuring out and settling into doing things completely on my own during the day. With that in mind, I wanted to get back into regular habits with my new regular routine. I find it much easier to pick up those regular habits in one go because otherwise the more time I let pass, the harder it becomes for me. Kind of like after a vacation, getting back into a regular schedule as soon as possible?

I am not saying I have been on a vacation by any means. I went into labor and then delivered a baby two weeks ago! Duh to that not being a vacation. However, with Peter at home for the past couple weeks and me in that post-baby recovery stage, it was easy to get lazy about certain things. I have felt kind of antsy to start up “normal life” and “normal me” again. Part of that includes getting started with some of my own personal goals.

Over the weekend, we finally did a full grocery shopping trip and I stocked up on many of my favorite healthy eating staples.

I plan on picking up light workouts again starting today. I have felt ready for workouts for over a week and my body feels adequately rested and prepared. I want to go ahead and get cracking on that routine along with everything else as well. I feel ready. And excited!

Today is not the start of some diet or fitness plan. It’s the continuation of what I love to do – eat healthily and be active because it makes me feel good. In the past I would have approached today with a “last supper” type of attitude. It would mean the beginning of restriction and having to be “100% ON” and “perfect”. I wouldn’t have eaten balanced meals yesterday and over the course of the weekend.

I had some treats this weekend…but it wasn’t with the mentality that I had to cram in as many as possible. They aren’t going anywhere.

I simply look at today as a need to continue focusing my priorities on caring for myself in addition to my family. It would be too easy to put myself and my health on the backburner, so I want to pick up the positive momentum from day one of my new normal. I will be working on getting back in shape and losing the baby weight…but in a healthy, balanced, non-restrictive way. There’s no pressure. I’m simply doing what makes me happy and my best self. Time to get started…or I guess I should say…time to keep on keeping on.

Question of the Day – What tips do you have for keeping and getting into healthier habits?