Whoa Baby!!!

Tags

baby, family, healthy, mom, motherhood, new

Hey Everyone! I’m sorry I’ve been MIA, our new baby has kept me totally busy, & happier than ever!

Meet Jackson Andrew Becker!
Born: August 6th at 11:19pm
Labor: 23.5 hours

He is absolutely perfect and a great baby! I gained 40 lbs with this pregnancy, & am excited to share my postpartum journey!

Lots of love,
Mrs. B

My Pregnancy Workouts: 2nd & 3rd Trimester

Hey Everyone,

Hope all is well! Just got back from our babymoon last week and thought I would catch up on some posts. I had someone on Instagram suggest that I start posting some more of my current workouts… I just started my 3rd trimester, and aside from the heartburn the last couple of weeks, it’s been going really well! I contribute a big part of it to the workouts and overall diet I have been trying to keep up. Don’t get me wrong, I indulge too, but I think the regular workouts and overall clean eating make up for it!

Below are a few of the workouts that I have posted to Instagram. Feel free to try these if you are an expecting mommy! You can modify the weight based off of your fitness level. The big thing to remember are that you’re pregnant, not handicap! Expect that you are going to get tired faster, and it may take you longer than before to get through, but as long as you listen to your body, there is no reason you can’t get through these, and feel SO good after knowing it’ll be easier to get that body back after your lil one comes:)

Don’t forget to follow my Instagram for regular updates! @lifeofanewwife

Lots of Love,
Mrs. B

Here Comes Baby: Painting The Nursery

Tags

design, family, nursery, painting, small spaces

Hey Guys,

We sure have been busy around here! I’m still at work full time, and am almost 27 weeks! Time has been flying by…

Brett and I have slowly been working on the nursery. We picked our office room to convert, even though its the smallest, because if the layout and proximity to the master. About a month ago, we got rid of one of the bedroom sets, and moved the office stuff into the spare room.

The room is about a 9×7 aka SMALL! Lol. I decided to go with grey and white colors for the walls. We got really lucky, because wainscoting had already been installed when we moved in! Perfect for a nursery! I chose Gentle Rain from Behr paint for the grey color…

Here are some progress photos:

Above was the room as an office…

And that’s we’re we are now!

Next on the list are the ceiling light, closet organization, outlet covers, and ordering a rocker or glider. I’ve had my eye on the wingback one from Pottery Barn, but we’ll see!

The goal was just to get the room painted before our Babymoon, and we just made it in time… We leave for Playa Del Carmen, Mexico on Friday! I can’t wait!

Hope you enjoy the pics! Ill be sure to post some from the Babymoon, an accessories soon!

Lots of Love,
Mrs. B

My Food Roll: 2nd Trimester Meal Fave’s

Tags

cravings, diet, eating, Food, Health, Pregnancy, second trimester

Hey Everyone!

I’ve officially hit my stride at the 6 month mark! Hard to believe I’m already there… My diet has really been crucial the further I get into my pregnancy, as it gets harder to keep up with my old workouts.

Before my pregnancy, and for most of my life, I’ve had a body type that easily gains weight if I don’t manage my diet and workout at least 3 days a week. Luckily, I chose personal training and healthy reading for continued education;)

That being said, I’ve always believed in moderation, especially with this first pregnancy. I’ve seen some moms go and be completely strict with their diets and allowances while pregnant, and others seem to fly off the handle, eating just about everything in sight it seems lol. I’ve tried to be good for the most part, an I think it’s helped save me from getting all those cravings women talk about. I consider “cravings” to be the body’s way of telling itself it needs something. Perfect example: if I crave steak, I’m probably needing some more iron and protein… At least that’s how I like to think of it:)

Keeping the above in mind, I try to be good most of the time, stay active (every other day or more: just do something for at least 30-45 min), eat healthy meals, and indulge when need be. Most of my “cravings” have been fruit, and between weeks 15-18 I was getting a taste for red meat often. Lately, I’m happier having smoothies and steak salads then chocolate, lol. Portions are hard though… It’s easy to over eat, but the tummy aches after stink!!! I’ve attached some photos from the last few weeks, but I post daily to Instagram with lots of food ideas. Here are some of the pics:

I hope the pics offer some inspiration for meal ideas! If you’re on Instagram, please follow along! Just search: @lifeofanewwife and you’ll find me:)!

Lots of love,
Mrs. B

Quick n’ Easy Jalapeno Burgers

Tags

burgers, easy, healthy recipes, jalapeno, quick, stater bros

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all had a great weekend. I posted a photo to my Instagram yesterday about the dinner that Brett and I threw together… It was all so good that I had to share! The first part of this delicious dinner were the super easy to make Jalapeno Burgers. Literally just takes a few ingredients:

• jalapeno burger patties (I just bought the ones in the butchers section at Stater Brothers, they always have them in stock and have a great kick to them.)
• butter lettuce: Also used in the pear salad recipe I’ll post after this…
• honey dijon mustard
• light mayo
• 1 tomato sliced
• sliced provolone cheese
• fresh cracked pepper
• Hawaiian sweet hamburger buns

Again, all items can be picked up at your local Stater Bro’s, or make your own patties using lean ground beef, diced jalapenos, garlic, cracked peppercorn, salt, and chili flakes if you want that extra kick.

Toast the buns, then set aside. Cook the hamburgers on a cook top for approx 3-4 min. per side for medium burgers on high heat. While they’re cooking, add mayo and mustard to the buns, and a layer of lettuce to the bottom bun.

*A tip I learned watching Diners, Drive Ins and Dives: When the burgers are almost done, top with the slice of cheese, pour a splash of water on the patties to create steam, and cover with either an upside down skillet or bowl to trap the steam. It helps melt the cheese quickly, and infuse some extra juice in the burger!

Remove from heat and put a burger on top of the lettuce of each lower patty. Add the tomato and top with the top bun. So easy! Whole process only takes 10-12 minutes and you’re in spicy burger heaven!

Hope you enjoy! Try them with my baked sweet potato fry recipe, and/or the Asian Pear Salad!

Lots of Love,

Mrs. B

Working While Pregnant: How To Pack A Healthy Lunchbox

Tags

clean eating, cooking, Food, fruit, Health, healthy food, Home, instagram, Lunch box, Pregnancy, salad

Hey Everyone,

A few days ago, a follower on my Instagram account asked how I organize my food for work… which inspired me to do this post. I’m currently in my 22nd week of pregnancy, and time is flying by! I have been fortunate so far, and I think a lot of that has to do with diet. Don’t get me wrong, I have a HUGE sweet tooth which I indulge from time to time, but for the most part I try to stick with healthy food.

Pregnancy has brought on a whole new meaning to the word “snacking.” I feel like I constantly need to be putting food in my system. However, not wanting to become a whale this summer, and with a girlfriend’s wedding just 10 weeks after my delivery date approaching, I’m motivated to stay on track and give this little one some really awesome food:)

There are a few things to remember when packing for the office:

1. Timeframe: How long will you be there? How many meals/snacks do you need?
2. Variety: Try to remember your food groups ladies! protein, veggies, fruit, carbs, etc. and make sure you have some of each of the groups
3. Packaging: How will you pack the items so they stay fresh? (i.e. separating sauces and dressings so things don’t get soggy)

Here’s how I organize my time frame: if I’m in the office from 9-5, I usually have breakfast before I leave the house, even if its a protein shake and an apple. Then I know i’ll need something in between that and my lunch, like some fruit to snack on. I’ll need lunch, and probably some more veggies in the later afternoon before leaving to head home.

So… keeping variety in mind, here’s and example of what I’d pack:

• 1 cup of fruit
• 1 cup of veggies (carrots, celery etc.)
• 1 jar or container of salad with at least 3 ingredients for variety
• 1 cup of brown rice
• 1 protein like chicken, and almonds, hummus, or beans

This gives me a little bit of everything I need. There are some good items that you can keep at the office to make life a little easier too:

• salad dressing
• bread (if you like sandwiches)
• plenty of water
• condiments like mustard
• extra fruit (apples, or cuties are great)

I pack the items at night after dinner, or while I’m putting dinner together, so I have them ready to go on the shelf the next morning.

If you want to make a sandwich, just put all the inside ingredients in a tupperware, and assemble at the office so your sandwich is fresh and ready to go!

Here are some photos of my “lunchbox” from the past few weeks. I’ve been doing this more of late, since my schedule has had me coming in 4 days a week instead of 2, and I’m finally feeling like I’ve gotten a system that works and keeps me from getting drained during the day from this “little one” inside me 🙂

 

I hope you all find some useful tips for your lunchbox! Ladies, please remember it’s better to pack extra then not enough, and find ourselves struggling to get through the day! You can never overdo it on the veggies so reach for those more than anything else! We also have to try to keep these babies healthy and growing! 🙂

Lots of Love,

Mrs. B

 

Sweet Treat: Fruit & Angel Food Cake Trifle

Hey Everyone!

Thought I’d share a really easy dessert with you guys that’s perfect for summer! I did a very similar one last summer for Fourth of July… Here’s what you’ll need:
2 lg. packages for strawberries sliced
2 packs of blueberries
1 angel food cake torn to bite sized pieces
2 light cool whip containers
4-5 tbs honey

The serving dish really makes the dessert, so I borrowed my mother in laws since we don’t have one yet. Just add some angel food cake to the bottom, and fill in the layer with cool whip. Then lay out some sliced strawberries and blueberries. Drizzle some honey and repeat 2x until you get to the top. Don’t worry about making things perfect on the lower layers… You won’t see them anyway 😉! It makes a beautiful dessert that won’t put you in a coma! Lol

Enjoy!

Lots of Love,

Mrs. B

Nesting Mode has begun!

Tags

first, nesting, Pregnancy

Hey Everyone,

I’ve noticed recently that I’ve started getting some anxiety about our pup Calie and her dog hair in the house, and her paws, the dirt, the energy, everything truthfully has begun to terrify me a bit to be honest… Lol. Everyone has their thing right?

I know I won’t be able to keep the baby from being totally free from hair, but I’d like to have a handle on it, because the fear had gotten much worse through my first trimester when I was unable to clean after work…(no energy)

In addition to the dog hair issue, we have been back and forth over which room we will turn into the nursery, what to do about our very old mattress, and our couch thats on its last leg…. The list goes on:)

The last couple of days we have made some leaps and bounds! We typically go back and forth about what to do and then end up rushing (which I HATE) lol. Yesterday however, I went to Target, and next thing I knew, I was home with an arsenal of cleaning products and the need to clean!

I got started last night with dusting and polishing some furniture…

Today, Brett and I dropped Calie off at the groomer before scoping out the Pottery Barn Kids store, and ill definitely be back to purchase some of their linens! They have some adorable Elephant and Loin themed sheets and bumpers on the grey and white tones I love.

Then we went to Costco and picked up my new buddy… The iRobot Pet Edition! I can’t wait to use him!

On our way out we noticed a big furniture and mattress outlet store, so we pulled in and scoped things out. They had a cal-king Bellagio series mattress by Serta marked down to $850! A guys named Austin had a really laid back attitude and was very helpful! He wrote down the info for us and added in that the same owners owned the furniture place next door.

Could our luck possibly continue?!

We walked next door to the furniture side and the first couch on the right immediately stood out to me. We need a couch with a chase on one side for our narrow living room. It’ll give us a couple extra seats without blocking the walkway too much like an L-couch… We made sure to walk the rest of the floor before returning to the grey couch in the front. Our sales guy had popped in to check on us by this point so we waived him down.

The material was an upgraded micro fiber, that has a small woven chevron detail in the fabric. The frame was a dark-stained Alder wood. The ticket price was $1499! come to find out, that was with a sleeper sofa built in! We have a guest room already, so without the bed, we got it down to $1199. Considering most couches run between $2-3,000, this was a total rush!

We knew we wanted both the mattress and the couch, so we asked for a bundle deal, and got $150 knocked off the price… And there was no additional tax! Just flat rates, and $79 for delivery…. SOLD! We ordered both pieces, and they arrive in a couple of weeks!

You think we would be exhausted at this point… Wouldn’t you?

We grabbed lunch and Baja Fresh, and then went home and cleaned the whole house!

Now we are exhausted, and the baby has pinned me to the couch, but I feel so accomplished and at ease with a clean house, and a comfy bed on the way:)

Hope you all are having a great weekend! Ill be sure to update you on the iRobot after a few uses!

Lots Of Love,
Mrs. B

Restaurant Quality Mediterranean Chicken Salad

Tags

dinner, Food, healthy, lunch, salad

Hey Everyone!

Hope you all had a great Presidents Day weekend… Brett and I were pretty mellow. Workouts, laid out Saturday by the pool before the weather cooled down, I went for a hike… It was great to have some free time even though I worked Friday and Monday.

On Saturday when Brett and I were on our way to lay out at a friend’s pool, we stopped at Pita Jungle in Newport to grab some lunch. We both ordered the Mediterranean Chicken Salad. They were huge! We probably could have split one and shared some hummus, but they were delicious!

Last night I decided to head over to Sprouts for some veggies for dinner. I couldn’t decide what the heck to get, so I flipped through my camera roll on my cell phone and saw the pic I had taken of our salads from Pita Jungle. I was able to get most of the ingredients I could remember having, and making a version at home.

*Note: I did forget the feta cheese, peeled and chopped cucumber, and tomato, but your could easily add it to this recipe if you want.

Ingredients:
1 big handful of chopped curly leaf parsley
1 large sweet corn, boiled and kernels cut off
1/3 cup wild raisins
1 bell pepper chopped
1/2 red onion chopped
1/2 bag mixed salad greens
2 chicken breasts or 4 chicken strips (fresh)

Dressing
1 part White Pear Vinegar (or white wine works)
2 parts EVOO
2 tsp Lime juice
1 tbs Dijon mustard
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp cracked pepper

Start by putting a pot of water onto boil for the corn. It should take about 8 minutes for the corn to cook.

Once you have cleaned the chicken, season it. I like Tyler Florence’s Sun Dried Chili Rub, some ground cumin, salt, and pepper. You could also do a curry seasoning if you prefer. I cooked my chicken strips in a bit of EVOO on the stove in a skillet. It took about 15 minutes on medium heat.

Once you put the corn in, grab a measuring cup and combine your ingredients for the dressing. Whisk until combined and set aside.

While the corn and chicken finish up, grab a big salad bowl and start adding in ingredients. Chop and add the onion and parsley. Pour in a bit of the dressing so the onion mellows out a bit.

Chop up the bell pepper and throw it in the skillet once you take the chicken out. Just for a couple of minutes, so the bell pepper soaks up some of that chicken flavor, and loses some of that “bell pepper bite.” Let the chicken rest while you grab the corn and throw it in an ice bath to cool down.

Add the cooked bell pepper to the salad bowl, as well as the raisins. Shave and add the corn. Then chop the chicken and add it too. Toss these ingredients, and then add the salad greens and remaining salad dressing to finish.

When plating, try to get the salad greens on the bottom, so all the other delicious ingredients are shown. Top with feta cheese if desired and serve!

This recipe takes about 25-30 minutes at home, but the result is a restaurant quality salad dinner that is both delicious and beautiful! It has all of the components of a balanced meal: protein, starch, and veggies.)

I hope you will give this a try! Double the recipe if your cooking for more, and don’t forget to taste your food along the way! If the dressing is too bland or oily, add more mustard and lime juice. If its too sour or has a bite, mellow it out with a dash of sugar.

Have fun and enjoy!!!

Lots of love,

Mrs. B

Restaurant salad

My salad

My Instagram comparison

Follow me on Instagram for more delicious food ideas, and baby updates!

My Pregnancy: The First Trimester

Tags

family, first trimester, Health, maternity, mommy, Pregnancy

Hey Everyone,

Today’s a travel day from San Francisco back to Orange County, so I thought I’d catch y’all up on my last few months 😉

We might as well start with the “how this happened” lol. “Well, when a man and a woman…” Just kidding!!! Ill admit, things happened quickly, first month quickly, but I was relieved I think more then anything when we heard.

I got most of the symptoms you hear about, and some I didn’t expect… My boobs were sore and achey for weeks! (sorry guys) and none of my bras fit by the 6th week. I will probably be special ordering them from Ebay by the end of this… My sense of smell is normally good, but it was on another level, and still is in some cases. I had smells that would make me nauseous, but didn’t get the morning sickness. Sick a couple of times, but nothing consistent thankfully. The big thing was the lack of energy, there were times where I felt like I had become a walking zombie that could hardly function, and was in a daze. The type of tiredness that made me wonder if this baby had drugged me from inside lol.

When women say “listen to your body” they really mean it, and I get it now. When I could, I slept. It’s meant getting in bed by 9:30 almost every night, but makes all the difference. Ie been able to adjust the last couple of weeks and get up early to work out consistently.

Workouts have consisted of running, walking, spin, yoga sculpt classes, and cardio equipment. Just depends how I’m feeling. When I have energy, I take advantage. Sleep is the key!

Next is the food. It’s been really hard for me to adjust my low carb diet, but necessary. When I wanted to tighten up, I could just skip the carbs and deal with being a little grouchy:) now though, if I don’t have a balanced amount of carbs with at least 2 meals, everything gets thrown off track and I feel horrible. I just try to keep it in moderation, and the baby this far has given me a “cut off switch” if you will, when I need to stop. It’s like the space invasion has already started around my stomach. I’ve really had to prep each day and pack fruit, protein shakes, and nut bars to help keep me going between meals. As long as I have something every few hours, I’m good!

One thing I experienced that I didn’t think I would was the fear of getting excited early. I was worried something could happen, and wasn’t feeling comfortable talking about it early on. I felt guilty because family and everyone else around was so happy and excited, and I just didn’t want anything bad to happen. It wasn’t until my 12 wee ultrasound, and then the Cystic Fibrosis ultrasound the week after when we got the all clear, that I really felt relief and excitement all at once. I can’t wait to see this little baby, and can’t wait to bond with it as it grows over the coming months:) I love it already, and can’t imagine how ill feel by the time it gets here:)!!!

We are finding out the sex in a couple of weeks… Most of the family is thinking a girl, but I don’t know… I’m going the other way. Ill keep you posted!

Lots of Love,

Mrs. B

4 weeks

6 weeks 5 days

Bump at 9 weeks

12 weeks 1 day

12 weeks 5 days (baby’s hand was up by its face. First time we saw it open it’s mouth, and stick out its tongue!)

13 week bump!