Happy Monday!! This is actually a Monday I am excited about, because it is the start of our vacation weeks. We leave early early early on Thursday morning to drive up to Indiana for the weekend so we can visit some of our wonderful friends. I simply cannot wait! The only sad thing about it though, is after tomorrow’s post it is the kick-off of lots of absenteeism on my part. 🙁

I’ll be posting tonight (obviously as you are reading it now), tomorrow, and then Monday – Wednesday next week…and that’s it until the last two days of June. It’s really going to be July in the blink of an eye for me. I’m cool with that because I know time flies when you’re having fun and that is what I fully plan on doing on both my vacations. Plus, I have some awesome guest posts lined up for you during my long hiatus. The break is going to do me some good because it has admittedly been hard cranking posts out for me anyways during the first trimester. I seem to be getting headaches really easily and being in front of the computer seems to be a trigger. That is why I took a full blogging break over the weekend. I just couldn’t manage! I feel like such a poo-poo blogger lately. Not cool. BUT another good thing is I will be basically finito with the first trimester after my vacations and saying sionara to the crazy hormone surges, so I will feel a million times better and back to the normal goings on that typically make up Faith, Fitness, Fun. I hope you all can be patient with me. I know the genuine readers and followers will be and I thank you immensely for that. 🙂

Since we got that out of the way and I rambled on for way too long, I guess I should finally get to my weekend. It consisted of many things in “twos”.

Saturday morning I went to the gym with Peter because I promised him I would go to spot him for benching two 100 lb dumbbells. I wasn’t feeling up for much of a workout, so I told myself I would walk on the treadmill at an incline for 20 minutes with my book. I ended up going two times as long and felt great afterwards. I even finished book number two of the week.

Savor the Moment by Nora Roberts. I don’t typically care for Nora Roberts’ books, but the Bride Quartet series is actually reasonably entertaining. They are just super chicky, lighthearted, feel-good reads and I enjoy them well enough. Definitely not the best out there or even something I would highly recommend, but good for a fast and girly book.

After the gym, I showered and got ready quickly to head out for the two hour drive to meet Lindsey at a good halfway point for our last lunch get-together for awhile. We got a table for two at a Mexican restaurant called El Sombrero. I indulged in chips + salsa and ordered a combo that came with two enchiladas (one chicken + one bean), a beef hard taco, and rice.

The taco was a little dry and the chicken in the enchilada stopped appealing to me halfway through, but that bean enchilada was great. I left the meal quite content in the tummy. It was great to see Lindsey again for another two hour visit and to chat with such an awesome lady. I’ll miss seeing her regularly, but I’m so happy for her to be moving back to a place she loves.

When I got home Saturday afternoon I took two hours to unwind before heading over to my bro & sis in laws place for dinner. They invited us and I’m not about to give up a night of no cooking! Unfortunately, very little of what she made agreed with me and my crazy food aversions. I ended up eating two small smoked pork sandwiches and that’s it.

I was ready to call it an early night afterwards, so I headed home and went right to bed. Yes, it was only 9:00 on a Saturday, but I was craving sleep. I apparently needed it, because I slept in for two hours, getting a grand total of 11 hours of sleep. It was very refreshing. I even skipped Sunday school (since I have this month off from teaching the class) and just went to the worship service.

Yesterday’s service was about a table for two as well and focused on two things we should always do before taking the communion (eating the bread and drinking the grape juice wine that represents Jesus’ sacrifice). 1 = Remember his death. Remember that it was grueling, agonizing, torturous, and horrible…but He still did it for us. Always remember.And 2 = examine yourself before participating. Consider things in your life that you may need to work on, things you may need to confess and ask God for His help, things that God has blessed you with. Examine yourself so you can approach the table for two (you & Jesus) so he can use the experience to work in your life and continue changing it for the better. It was a very moving service. I may have shed a tear or two. I can’t help but for emotions to overwhelm me when hormonal considering what God has done for me.

This has gone on long enough so I will wrap it up. The rest of Sunday was a two hour nap (yes even after sleeping 11 hours), two wonderful meals (a sandwich + soup lunch and some pizza for dinner), a two hour episode of  So You Think You Can Dance, and enjoying two amazing flavors in a small Strawberry Golden Oreo blizzard. Oh yes…I went there!

• What was the highlight of your weekend? Mine is a tie between lunch with Lindsey and that Blizzard treat. I do have a post coming tomorrow to show you that I am eating reasonably healthy things a fair amount of the time and not JUST going out to eat. Although I do know this past week had a LOT of going out in it.
• Do you ever feel weird/bad for not blogging per your regular blogging schedule? I don’t really feel bad and I don’t believe I’m so important that people miss hearing from me for a few days, but I do know it is going to be odd to not be blogging like normal for such a long period of time.
• Are you a napper? I am NOT a napper…except when pregnant. Then I could easily nap my day away.

I started last month off with a post on some random things learned over the course of April. It was a fun post to write, so I have decided to continue my “Lessons of a Mommy Blogger” monthly post. May included lots of lessons – both big and small. It was a great month!

1. Running Shorts are Awesome!

I know I’m not a runner, but that doesn’t change the fact that running shorts are extremely comfortable for working out in. I bought a few pairs at the beginning of the month because it started getting warmer and my old workout shorts were kind of really old. From not having underwear riding up on you thanks to the built in undergarment to how flattering they are, I fell in love immediately. Maybe one day I will actually use them for a run.

2. Friendships change.

I’ve learned that as we age and pursue different things in life, friendships will naturally alter as we do. That’s not to say they are any less worthy, simply that they are different. I also learned that friendships with those whom we have more in common are very fulfilling and that new friendships can grow fast. Em and I are already becoming great friends ever since learning we lived less than 30 minutes from each other. I had tons of fun today Em!!

3. Writing more seriously is TOUGH! I haven’t disclosed this yet, but I got contacted a few weeks ago about writing a freelance article for the June/July issue of the online magazine Faith & Fitness. I was given a lot of support and learned quite a few things. I look forward to continuing to grow in my writing and hope to continue writing in places other than the blog. We’ll see where it goes. And I will be sure to link to the article I wrote once it is available. 😀

4. No A/C isn’t as bad as it sounds…until bedtime.

We have been without A/C since last September. It was cool enough then for it to not be a problem, but the past month things have started to warm up a lot (hello 90 degrees outside). I was worried it would be a sauna in our house. Thanks to an attic fan, fans in every room of the house, and little carpet it hasn’t been uncomfortable at all. Well, except for a few random nights where it’s pretty muggy. I like to sleep with it cool and it has been hard sleeping in warmer temps. We’re trying to decide what to do about the A/C….there are lots of things to consider with our current unit.

5. Pregnancy symptoms hit FAST!

One day I was fine, the next I was not. I should have been more aware of this since I’ve been there before, but it still hits as a shock. Another good lesson that comes from this…you really learn to go with the flow. I have learned to fit in workouts where and how I can and that it’s okay if I can’t stomach vegetables all the time. Things will be balanced out soon.

6. Going along with #5…when pregnant, I can choose not so healthy meals over and over and over. And not get sick of it like I would before…or care because it’s the only thing that sounds good.

I showed you before how meals like the above were a common part of my weekend, but I was still able to go out to lunch today and order some heavier stuff again. Em & I met up at a really neat restaurant called The Flying Biscuit. I ordered the black bean & corn cakes with feta, sour cream, & tomatillo sauce and had some of their famous grits on the side.

Odd combo, I know. It was good though. The cakes were a teensy bit dry, but had good flavor. I did scrape all the feta off too. I don’t like it and it’s a no-no during pregnancy. The grits and biscuit were amazing. I’m glad I listened to her and got them. It was a wonderful lunch and we had lots to talk about as usual. I already can’t wait to see her again.

7. Peter rocks! The man knows me well. He got me the new camera AND surprised me with a 90 minute massage in May. I am still loving the camera and can’t wait to continue learning how to use it better. I also really can’t wait to cash in the massage sometime soon.

8. Many of us have body image issues from time to time.

Thanks to all the comments on my post about body dysmorphia it became very apparent that we can relate to each other on not feeling our best physically on occasion. I love the support we can give each other through the blogging world. I have come a long way, but it helps to know that when I do face it there are other gorgeous ladies who can understand and help. I can only hope that those types of issues are reduced in the future.

9. I don’t get as upset about judgmental comments as I expected I would. I had my first judgmental comment this past month (it related to Makenzie and my parenting). I thought I would get more offended by such a comment, but I didn’t. I believe it is because I trust I am a good mother and do not allow others’ opinions of me to determine my own self worth. I feel confident in who I am as a person.

10. Trust God.

‘Nough said. 😉

• What is something you learned during the month of May?
• Do negative comments affect you at all? How do you respond to them? I actually intended to respond to the one I mentioned, but then time got away. I don’t think I need to defend myself on my blog, but I do kind of regret not responding (in a calm, appropriate manner) to the comment.
• What do you love to workout in?