150 days of deployment in selfies

soooo now that we're down to the last bit of this deployment i've been doing a lot of reflecting.  i have learned SO much and done so many new things. i decided when jasper left that i would take a selfie a day and make a flipagram to use as a reflection of what has happened and the different emotions i've gone thru during his time away.  here are a few things i have realized, done and accomplished...

• road tripped across the country and back
• turned 30 and absolutely LOVE it #thisis30
• got new glasses
• snapchat filters are my best form of entertainment
• found a new sense of style (so much more time to get ready in the morning, ha!)
• truly experienced fall in virginia
• ran two races
• got back into my gym is life days... 300# deadlift!!!!!
• cried a lot
• got sick three times... including being sick as a dog the day jasper left
• went to the doctor for only the second time since i moved to VA
• flew to california for thanksgiving
• visited katie in oklahoma and texas
• flew on 7 planes!
• had way too much time to contemplate life and drive myself absolutely insane
• got a new insane work schedule that keeps me away from my pups too much
• drove my mom insane with the 500 crying phone calls (i love you momma!!!)
• held babies and babysat
• cooked tons and tons of food
• spent a week in dorms for a work conference
• i hate yardwork
• i am super handy and can fix shit but i dont mind leaving it to the hubs
• i never knew how much i could miss someone
• online friendships are amazing - shoutout to all my ladies going thru this deployment too! :*

pretty neat, huh??

what's cookin' good lookin'?

heeeeyyyyy there.  so a lot of people have been asking me about my eating lately.  wondering if i could share some food ideas, etc.  with that, i decided to post my meal prep for this week!

my go-to proteins are typically ground turkey and chicken breast.  i also ALWAYS keep a bag of frozen, pre-cooked turkey meatballs in my freezer.  they are a life saver when i run out of food or i'm just plain sick of eating the food in my fridge.

this week, i decided to prep my chicken in the crockpot. easy peasy and my long lost friend justin had posted this recipe on his instagram so i decided to try my own version of it!!

i put 4lbs boneless skinless chicken breast into the crockpot along with the following:

1 packet carribean seasoning
juice of 1 lemon
juice of 1 lime
juice of 1 orange
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 cup water
salt
pepper

cooked on high for about 4hrs, shredded, threw back in on warm for a few hours then drained the juice. it's so good! and so versatile.  i've already mixed it with my eggs and put bbq sauce on it. mmm mmm!!

next i made some ground beef.  i use 93% lean or higher. i haven't eaten red meat in a while so i decided to throw it into the mix this week.

with the ground beef i make big mac salads:

ground beef
diced onion
diced pickles
diced tomatoes
lettuce
thousand island dressing

NOM NOM NOM

next prep -- roasted veggies. i cut up yellow squash, zucchini and mushrooms, sprayed with my olive oil mister, sprinkled with mrs.dash garlic and herb and baked in the oven at 425 for about 15 mins

**when i'm making large batches of veggies to last me a few days, i try to slightly under cook them to make up for microwave reheating**  

i roasted my sweet potatoes the same way -- cut up into chunks, sprinkle with salt, pepper, and paprika, bake in over at 425 for about 25 mins

lastly, i steamed some frozen stir fry veggies i had in my freezer, cooked some brown rice and make chicken rice bowls with my soy sauce replacement - liquid aminos

overall, i like to cook large amounts of proteins and veggies to mix and match as i please. here's a sample of what i ate on monday:

breakfast
two egg whites
shredded crockpot chicken
diced bell pepper
(all scrambled together)
whole wheat english muffin
cold brew coffee with sugar free pumpkin spice creamer

lunch:
chicken breast
brown rice
stir fry veggies

2nd lunch:
shredder crockpot chicken
roasted veggies
roasted sweet potato

dinner:
big mac salad as listed above

before bed:
casein protein shake

boom bam! not too shabby! i typically eat one meal a day that doesn't have carbs. the timing of that meal depends on when or if i workout that day :) the meal farthest away from my workout is carb free and if i don't workout that day, my last meal before bed is carb free.  repeat after me: CARBS ARE OUR FRIEND, THE SCALE IS NOT. lol!

please don't hesitate to comment on here or shoot me a fb message if you'd like more help!

ready, set, reset!!

sooo these past few weeks have been a little, ahem, crazy? for me... i went to visit katie and then last weekend was my wedding anniversary and while i didn't stop working out, i definitely was more than slacking on my diet as well as consuming WAY TOO MUCH alcohol! while at first, it was kind of nice to just stop caring, as life IS about balance, my body was screaming for me to reset this week!

so i did what every normal girl would do and called my momma! we agreed we'd hit it hard until thanksgiving.  well, of course this week my body decides to be 1. exhausted and 2. bloated and i could NOT stop feeling hungry.  either way, it was deload week in my third powerlifting cycle so i just kept doing what i do.

well tonight i realized it was officially the end of my 12th week of doing the RP diet and powerlifting. i committed to these 12 weeks.  i told myself that if i could stay as consistent as possible during these 12 weeks i would be so so so proud of myself.  if you asked me last week how you thought i did during these 12 weeks i'd say sub-par. however, after sitting down tonight and looking at my progress pics and my lift graphs, i am SO PROUD of myself! i am just reminded again how consistency pays off.

overall i have lost 4, yes, you're reading that correctly, FOUR pounds. that's it.  but my lifts have increased by a shit ton and my waist is SO much smaller.  at first i was hesitatnt to post these pictures because i was embarrassed at how much weight i gained but honestly, i am proud that i can focus on myself and turn my life around.  i have eaten pizza, i have drank beer, i have eaten apple pie, i have drank vodka.  but i didn't do that every day.  and i didn't let one meal of pizza ruin days and weeks of eating for me.  i re-taught myself to use food to fuel my body and my workouts.  i taught myself to respect my body by feeding myself things that make me feel good instead of punishing myself with things that make me feel gross.  this was continuously reflected in how i felt at the gym as well.

i still have a few months until i reunite with jasper, and i plan to stay consistent with what i have been doing but possibly switch up some of my training just to mix things up.  i am so excited to share this lifestyle with my swolemate when he returns!

let's talk marriage...

marriage.  we all know it isn't easy.  you go into it telling yourself, "this isn't going to be a walk in the park, you have to work for it, when things get tough, you fight thru it, you don't give up just because things aren't easy..." but what you don't factor in is, quitting your job, giving up a potential career, leaving your family, your friends, everything you've known and worked for for 28 years to be alone in a different state.  alone.  isn't marriage something you do together?  not in this life.  at least not yet.  you feel lost, confused and when things in your marriage get tough, it's hard to sort them out when you're never around each other.

today is our two year wedding anniversary. when i first found out jasper was deploying, i didn't really think much of us not being together.  however the last few days, as it has been rapidly approaching, i have been a mess.  i.am.so.sad.  am i sad that we're not together to celebrate? maybe not so much.  i think i'm sad because i just want to do normal things.  i want to wake up to my husband so annoyingly getting ready in the bathroom and making the light shine into my grouchy, squinty eyes.  i want to go downstairs after he's left for PT to find the breakfast he made for me in the microwave and my coffee poured.  i want to give him a back rub after a long day at work.  i want to hold his hand. i want to pack his lunch, or deliver him things at work that he always seems to forget.  i want to look him in the eyes and tell him i forgive him for things that have happened and tell him we can accomplish and get through anything together.  because two years ago, we agreed to be a team, no matter what, and fight through the rough patches. and as bad as it sucks, this deployment has made our communication levels rise, and made our marriage stronger.

when i met jasper, as much as i was in denial, i knew he was the one.  it probably explains the rapid marriage, moving, etc.  i don't think i've felt like more of an emotional mess in my life than i have the last two years.  while two years of marriage is more like six months to us, i wouldn't trade it for anything.  this is the plan that God has for us.  and if it means i have to wait another two years to celebrate our "one year anniversary" then i will.  as bad as it sucks and as hard as it is, i love you, Jasper Rankin. 'till infinity and beyond. <3 <3 <3