Before I begin, please note that no guilt went into the making of this post.

Yesterday morning I posted about getting back into a normal routine and wanting to focus on keeping up healthy habits. I also hoped to start gaining momentum in reaching personal post-partum fitness goals. Last night, I told you all how great the day went and the exciting news of getting back in the gym. Undoubtedly those all were great things. Then, after dinner I succumbed to an old, not so great habit.

A friend from the mom’s group brought us another meal last night. The meal included some dessert – a container of homemade mini chocolate chip cookies. Aka a total weakness. Peter & I brought the container to the couch to chill with us after the kiddos were in bed. Then we proceeded to snack snack snack.

source because i forgot to take any pics

I want to be clear. I’m not upset about eating some cookies. Without a doubt I knew I would have some when she dropped them off. The “confession” I refer to is a bit of frustration over the mindless state of the eating. I didn’t overeat. I didn’t eat my emotions. But if I have dessert, I want to savor it. I would have much rather taken out an appropriate portion and taken the time to truly enjoy each bite versus eating a larger amount without really considering the taste.

I don’t feel guilty about any extra calories or think I ate “bad” yesterday. On the whole, I ate extremely well for my body’s health yesterday. The mindless munching was only a slight hiccup and does not negate the good decisions I made for myself yesterday. Could I have made a more satisfying decision in how I consumed the sweet little chocolate chip morsels? Sure. I didn’t because I’m only human. I can’t (and DON’T) expect myself to be perfect. I can only do my best.

Sometimes my best includes reacquainting myself yet again with practices I strongly believe, like eating with intention. I hope to share all those experiences because they are real. So, my point in this little “confession” is not really a confession at all. I don’t write with the hopes of justifying or castigating myself. I put my fingers to the keys to reflect that struggles, no matter how minor, do exist for everyone. But at the same time, they aren’t everything. Look at them; learn from them; move on.It’s the only way progress can happen.

Question of the Day – After receiving a few general requests, I would like to do a Q+A post on breastfeeding. What questions do you want answered?

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?