August 2017 Catch Up Over Bone Broth

I’m kind of sort of maybe and totally excited that I decided to start doing these monthly recaps. Last month was the first with the July 2017 catch up over bone broth, and now here we are a month later with the August 2017 catch up over bone broth.

I enjoy sharing all the life things with you, but I am mostly doing these so that I have them nicely packaged in one place so that as time goes on, Ryan and I can look back and reflect on all that was.

August 2017 Catch Up Over Bone Broth

Health

Some days I have to pinch myself, but my stomach is still perfectly on point. I continue taking less and less HCL, and that tells me that I must be producing some of the stomach acid on my own now. 

After the DUTCH results came back, my functional hormone doctor started me on an Adrenal supplement where 3 capsules provide the equivalent of one-quarter once of fresh, raw whole adrenal and one-quarter once of fresh raw whole liver. The first week I took just one capsule a day, the second week two capsules, and now I should move to three capsules, but I need to message my doctor because between that and the WP Thyroid, I might have too much energy now. Would you complain about that?!

I continue to work on overall health and wellness daily, and I am (still) far from perfect with what I eat and how I live, but I since I no longer need anything strict in my life, I am choosing to be okay with imperfection.

Fitness

August rocked on the fitness train! I did my first trail race, fell in love, and the rest is history. 

All throughout August (once the race was over), I have focused heavily on training for one goal – trail running, hills, and leg endurance. And the way I have done this is through lots of leg workouts with a focus on heavier weights combined with endurance-type exercises (ex. dumbbell squats with a jump squat in between), treadmill incline training, and WOD’s from Jess Allen’s Train Like an Athlete Program.

There is nothing easy about the workouts, but every day they are different (and I love variety) and each time I complete a workout I feel stronger.

Professional

I finally upgraded my camera in August. A local photographer friend sold me her Canon 5D Mark II. While I am grateful for the years with my first Canon, I have hit the point in my career where it’s imperative that I have a commercial camera. I have started doing more photos for product packaging, larger website projects, and even large-print advertising. My old Canon just wasn’t suitable. I am in love with the new full-frame camera. I have so much to learn with using it still, but the functionality has taken a huge step up!

A client and I went to TECHmunch together in San Francisco last week, and it was a great event for learning and networking. I had two favorite sessions. One was a food stylist, Abby Stolfo. The other with Tim Weingarten of Pinterest. Both had so many bits and pieces of information I grabbed for the tool box.

And finally, while I decided not to the full ADAPT Program with Chris Kresser at this moment in my life, I did enroll in his ADAPT Academy. The program is in BETA and only 200 people were allowed initially. There are courses and information on everything from SIBO to his 14Four program and the “Paleo Template 101” to a focused seminar all about Iron. I’m looking forward to studying, learning, and growing. I might share information here and there via the blog, but more likely to share little tidbits of information via my Health Coaching + Healing Newsletter which you can subscribe to HERE. Anything you’re dying to know more about?

Personal and Family

Ah, my favorite part of the monthly recap. 

Samarah started her second year of preschool, the first year of Awanas (at church) and first real shot with gymnastics. Tuesday nights are insanely busy, but awesome! I could just cry like a schoolgirl thinking about how big she is getting (she turns 4 in September). Last night when I picked her up from Awanas, she ran up to me yelling, “Mama mama mama,” and then, “How was your dinner with your friends?” She remembers the things I tell her and her little heart cares about every last thing. I can’t wait to share her birthday post with you. Heart. Stopper.

Isaiah has fully become one chatty little boy. His vocab during this past month has probably tripled, and we are so grateful. He is not slowing down one bit….with his energy levels or eating habits. Monday night at dinner he ate an entire (huge) plate of food. Then, when Samarah was done with hers and had gotten down, he ran over to her seat, climbed up, and finished her plate as well. Both he and Samarah are in a size 9 shoe. So many days I want to scream with Isaiah, but when he laughs I feel my cup running over. His “Yeah” is priceless, and the way he loves to help clean up is adorable. And listen….the little dude is fresh as all heck. He is so cute that I want to squeeze his little cheeks and big legs all the time:)

There has been a minor hiccup in the final days before Amiya’s adoption. I will blog about it after the adoption finalizes, but had it not been for Maya’s amazing social worker, I might be over here pulling all my hair out. Nonetheless, August was the final full month where you will not see Amiya’s beautiful face. September is the month we have been patiently waiting for. In August, I got some letters for a little Gotcha Day creativity. Soon she will be all ours, forever. Gah!

Ryan was gone in August for quite the stretch, and a couple of those days were really hard for me. On the morning before he got back, I took all the kids out for a walk. There was a hot air balloon right outside our house, and Samarah asked, “Is daddy up there?” Ha. I sure do realize just how much Ryan does and contributes to the house and our family when he’s gone. I’ve never known a man to honor the responsibilities like he does, and the impact it has on our lives is something I could never describe. I have no idea how I hit the jackpot with him. No. Idea.

 And finally, this past weekend I did another pantry re-organization and clean out. You can see more of it HERE and learn more about How to Stock a Healthy Pantry HERE.

Is it just me or does doing a project like this make you super happy, stress-free, and ready to conquer anything?! That same day we also got all the fall decorations up. It might still be 110 degrees but **I don’t care.** Let it be fall.

Blog Posts I Wrote

{I decided to add this section to the monthly roundup so that all posts from a month are in one place.}

Here are all the posts I wrote this past month. If you’ve stumbled upon this blog post from my personal Facebook profile, the one post I didn’t put up there that you may have missed is the last one….Why Are We Blaming Fitness for Infertility? There are some things I am choosing to just keep here on my blog, so if you don’t want to miss anything, be sure to bookmark this blog or save via Bloglovin’.

1. More is Not Better
2. My Favorites Issue 11
3. Color Conversation
4. Gluten Free Roundup 3
5. Let It Be Fall
6. Making Gluten Free a Game
7. Brazen Trail Racing
8. A Normal Conversation
9. Hiking Yosemite
10. What the Lake Teaches
11. 16 Gotcha Day Party Ideas
12. My Favorites Issue 12
13. Why Are We Blaming Fitness for Infertility

And that was August. Upcoming in September? Everything and all the things, and I’m so excited I can’t even stand it for one more second. On Saturday I have my next half marathon trail race, the following weekend we are celebrating Samarah’s birthday with her actual birthday on the 12th. Then, Maya and I head to Minnesota, and immediately after that, we are headed to court for her big day. At the end of the month, I’ll be in Sacramento for a work conference and many exciting professional things on the horizon to share.

C’mon September, I’m waiting to hold your hand.

Tell me something new and good about YOUR August:)

Xox,
SKH