In case you haven’t guessed, this post will talk about gas. Farts. Toots. Stench bombs. Whatever you want to call them. If you have more class than I do and want to skip over, that’s just fine. If you have your own musical qualities in which to relate or share, let’s bond. It will be a grand ole time!

Did you realize that the month of July had five Saturdays. I did. Not because I’m some freak of nature who can mentally figure out dates in her head. Although, that’s true too. I mainly paid attention to the five Saturdays in the month of July because it meant I had to spread our monthly grocery budget across five weeks instead of the usual four. Say what, kemosabe?!

After our grocery bill rang up last week and I realized we still managed to come in under budget, I patted myself on the back as I left the store. Then I learned that my budget meal shopping could end my marriage. Let’s just say when looking for cheap meals many of my favorites involve beans. We had lots and lots of beans this past week.

White Bean Salad

Breakfast for Dinner Quesadilla with Black Beans

Veggie Pot Pie with Black Eyed Peas (inspired by Meghann’s recipe)

Even the night I planned to resort to clear out items we have stocked in our freezer, I ended up with beans…

Morning Star Farms Spicy Black Bean Burger…with hummus (extra beans!)

Peter wouldn’t touch me with a ten-foot pole for fear of me intoxicating his nostrils after all of those meals. I won the budget game, but certainly didn’t win the digestive game. Oh, yes. I’m going there. Beans truly are a musical fruit with me. And I have such difficulty keeping tabs on it! I get incredibly bad stomach cramps if I try to hold in the “bombs of stench” as Peter so kindly has called them.

I amaze myself sometimes, so I really do feel bad when things just slip. Okay, I don’t feel so bad when things slip around Peter. He knew what he got himself into when he chose to marry me. But around others….EEEK! I usually just succumb to suffering gas pains for fear of people avoiding me forever. Yet, I cannot lie. It happens sometimes.

Like this past week. In spin class. During a climb. Those poor souls behind me. It must have been like a missile! Then, at the grocery store. Only myself and one other person in the aisle. And I know she knows I did it, yet I still walked away nonchalantly. Then avoided contact the remainder of my shopping. Oh, how embarrassing! Hey…I know I’m not alone. Right? Right?!?! 

• What staple foods do you use when shopping super cheap?
• Do you ever have to “let one rip” in public? What do you do? 

I have recently been tagged to share my 7 Links! I figure quite a few of you have seen this type of post going around and I eagerly wanted to participate. Thanks to Gabriela, Callie, Jenn, Heather, and Laura for tagging me! <— and I feel like I’m missing someone…eep!

Basically, I share a link for each of the 7 categories and then tag another 5 bloggers to participate. I’m game! Hope you enjoy my 7 links. 🙂

Most Beautiful

Exposed: It took a lot to post a picture of myself in a bikini at eight months pregnant. To this day, I think this post expresses the main message I hope to deliver through this blog more eloquently than any other I have shared. It humbles me and inspires me all in one.

Most Popular

I Had A Baby Last Night: By far my most popular post. The post boomed after I shared it and even crashed my site for a bit. I guess you all wanted to see my video of brand new Baby B. And now he’s crawling!!!! Time goes too fast.

Most Controversial

I’ve Got Something To Say!: I don’t avoid controversial topics.  I will happily trod into the dark conversation zones from which others may shy away. This post isn’t really one of those. This post did, however, stem from a few controversial comments and emails I had received regarding how quickly I got back to blogging and working out regularly after Braedon’s birth.

I had received two separate emails with the following statements: “don’t you think its a little selfish to spend time blogging with a new baby?” and “you say take care of our bodies, but then you don’t do that yourself after JUST GIVING BIRTH!!”. It still surprises me I received such statements, but it also solidifies my belief in the importance of doing things for ourselves and letting negativity roll off your back. Whenever I think controversy on my blog, I remember how I felt typing this post in response to such comments.

Most Helpful

How I Overcame Binge Eating: I get more emails about my binge eating journey than any other topic. I loved putting all those thoughts into a cohesive post to hopefully continue reaching out to those struggling and help others see they are not alone.

Surprisingly Successful

What 2147 Calories Looks Like: I had NO clue this post would get the attention it has. In all honesty, I worried the post would seem like a cop out since the bulk of it simply listed out my meals and their calories. I went with it, though, and am so glad I did. It got some great discussion going!

Not Enough Success

How I Create Strength Training Plans: I don’t really like saying any post didn’t have enough success. Having a place to talk incessantly and you all here to support that makes every post a huge success by my standards. However, if I had to choose, I would say my post where I laid out step-by-step ways to come up with a strength training plan. It took a fair amount of effort to create and I thought it was very helpful, but it seemed to get lost in the shuffle of other posts.

Post You’re Most Proud Of

Hard To Write: The post where I laid out my secret dreams for all to read was a pretty proud moment. My nerves raced as I hit publish, but I immediately felt so freed sharing my hopes. It helped motivate me to now take steps to see them happen.

That was fun! And now to tag some other blog friends! I hate picking off the top of my head, so I randomly went to one of my super old posts and picked a few of you great friends that have been around for a lonnngggg time. Muah!

• Heather @ Where’s The Beach
• Katie @ Dashing Dish
• Courtney @ Pancakes & Postcards
• Nicole @ Making Good Choices
• Jess @ Eat Drink Breathe Sweat

Questions of the Afternoon: When did you start reading FFF? And how did you find my little space on the ‘net? I’m simply a curious cat after digging through old posts and trying to remember who all has been here for how long. 1 year or 1 day - you all mean the world!