Dr. Oz 3 Day Detox Cleanse

Today is day 1 of my Dr. Oz 3 Day Detox Cleanse. With our upcoming beach trip, and our gym closed M-F this week for renovations, I thought this would be a great time to do a cleanse. I looked into several pre-made juice cleanse options but the prices were outrageous. One of them wanted $65 just for shipping! I researched options from hacking the blueprint cleanse to getting a juicer myself, then I came across the Dr. Oz 3 Day Detox. Perfect!

There are plenty of reviews on YouTube. Pretty much everyone used their own blender which I liked, and most people reported that there was more juice than they could finish. I liked that too! The recipes aren't too scary and some of them actually sound good. The cost wasn't too bad, with the major zingers being the probiotic vitamin, coconut oil, and lavender oil (I was out of mine).

Bonus? I just tried the Sprouts brand of coconut water and OMG it is amazing. I'll need to go get more for the 2nd and 3rd days since I already drank it!

I'll report back with how it goes!

Babyproofing

It's time! Benjamin is on the move and it's time to baby proof our house. What are your best tips and things we need to look out for? Any brand suggestions for items would be really helpful!

One Year Ago This Week

A year. This week marks one year from my 16 week appointment where I brought up a suspicious lump to my midwife. If it weren’t for the calm, but serious, encouragement of that caring midwife, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Dismissing my concerns and letting my cancer fester until after delivery is something that I can’t even wrap my mind around. On the first appointment with my oncologist, she wrote in her notes “your midwife saved your life”. She’s right. After 4 Rounds of AC chemotherapy, a double mastectomy while pregnant, Step 1 to my reconstruction surgery, 4 Rounds of Taxol chemotherapy, 25 rounds of radiation, and months of expansion—it all leads to this. This is the day I’ve been waiting for. July 17th. Tomorrow morning I’m going into surgery to have my tissue expanders removed and permanent implants replaced, along with some scar revision. I’ve always been a private person and this diagnosis and treatment have caused me to be more open about myself and my body than I ever thought I could be. If it weren’t for the support of Ryan, I don’t think I could have made it out on the other side feeling as positive and full of love for life. Also, knowing that I work for a company that values my professional efforts and also my personal well being was such a piece of mind going through this. After going into an active lifestyle so quickly after treatment, I assume the one month hiatus on exercise will be somewhat difficult, but I’m prepared to cope with the difficulties both mentally and physically. This isn’t the “all clear” that our friends and family wants—cancer will never leave my mind and there’s no guarantee it’ll stay out of my body. But I’m confident knowing I did everything in my power to take on this disease, half while pregnant. We are cautiously optimistic about this surgery, as my choice to complete radiation therapy could cause issues with the skin healing. My doctors are feeling good going into surgery, and I’m going to take their feel good energy with me as I drift into that lovely sleep. Thank you for your thoughts, prayers, donations, and meals over the past year—and especially tomorrow.




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Be your own advocate. Know your body. You're not too young to be at risk for breast cancer, or other diseases. Speak up to your doctors if you feel like something isn't right!

LuluLemon vs. Athleta

The moms in my neighborhood seem to be pretty hot and bothered over Lululemon. Yes, their clothes are super cute, but who has $98 to spend on yoga pants. Um, not this lady! Enter- Athleta. I'm obsessed with all things Gap Inc, from GapKids for Benjamin to Old Navy and Banana Republic for me and Ryan. I was super excited to learn that there's an Athleta store here in Denver. I've received their catalogs for awhile but never actually gone into the store.

Here are some things that make their store awesome--

1. Specialized salespersons. All women who work there specialize in a certain sport. Wanna know how those cycle shorts will fare in a 120m weekender? There's a cycling expert in store to let you know how they worked for her. Will this top fall down when you're doing inverted yoga poses? There's a yogi to give you the scoop. Love that!

2. Wear it for a workout return policy. Say what? I'm a serial returner. Things stay in my closet with the tags on until I wear them, and if I don't they get returned. No sense letting money get wasted hanging in your closet. At Athleta, you can wear their clothes for a workout and if you don't like it-- return them. How awesome is that!?!?

3. Price. Like I mentioned above, Lululemon has cute tops and bottoms, but I'm not paying those ridiculous prices. Add in their "scarcity" business model, and you can count me out as a customer for life. Athleta has great prices to begin with, and they frequently have sales.

I've started getting into skorts lately, and here are some of my favorites-- Have you shopped at Athleta before?

Relay Skort $54

Ramp It Up (I got this one for $34!)

Runaround Skort $54

*I wasn't endorsed to write this-- I just really like the store

Benjamin is 7 Months

I'm a little late posting this (as usual), but here's Benjamin's 7 month photo. I can't believe how quickly he's growing, and I love how you can compare his size against the same object every month.

Some fun facts about Benjamin at this age:
Weighs 17 lbs
Wearing 9 month clothes
Sitting up well and playing with toys
Tried 4 vegetables: squash, green peas, green beans, and carrots
Likes the pool, but normally falls asleep in his raft
Loves putting anything in his mouth, especially ice cubes inside his mesh feeder.

Started taking feedings in a sippy cup and can hold the bottle by himself

Has 2 bottom teeth and 0 top teeth

Is on the verge of crawling- he rocks back and forth on his knees

Very entertained by our dogs, always trying to pet them

Very entertained by everything-- smiles and laughs all the time!

7 Months: June 25, 2013

6 Months: May 25, 2013

5 Months: April 25, 2013

4 Months: March 25, 2013

Three Months: February 25, 2013

Two Months: January 25, 2013

One Month- Christmas Day

Clothing & Accessories Sale

Yay!! I'm cleaning out my closet and would like to sell the following items that I haven't worn much. The link below will take you to my Shutterfly site where the item prices and sizes are listed in the photo description. Shipping is $5 if you're not local to Denver. Please email me at addison.se@gmail.com if there's anything you'd like!

Brands Include:

Lilly Pulitzer

Coach

Nine West

Banana Republic

Ann Taylor Loft

J Crew

Vera Bradley

Clothing Sale

Your New Summer Drink

Sparkly Pink Drink

Welcome to your new favorite summer cocktail. This is one of my favorites, and I'd love to share the recipe with you. We first had this drink at the Union Station Prime 108 lounge when we lived in Nashville. It's so crisp and refreshing, and has ingredients that pretty much any bar will have on hand. Not sure what it's called, maybe a modified Greyhound? Maybe a bartender reading could help a sister out. I just call it my sparkly pink drink. What's not to love?

It's so simple and fabulous, you're going to wonder why you weren't drinking this already. Not too sweet, and deliciously light!

Equal parts:

Grey goose (or another smooth vodka)

Champagne

Grapefruit Juice

Voila! You're welcome.

Thank You Notes: Tiny Prints Sale

Tiny Prints is having a 20% off friends and family sale on all orders. Combine it with an order over $49 and you'll get free shipping too. Also, if you're an Ebates user-- their cash back is 5%. I picked up some cute thank you notes for the family, and for Benjamin specifically. I'm on a big color kick right now and I'm loving the saturated shades on these two styles.

These would also make a great gift for someone. I love giving stationery for a gift, since it's something that can always be used. Which styles suit your fancy?

20% off: FNF13

Free Shipping: FS49

Benjamin's Nursery

Wow am I ever late on this post! We were pretty much done with Benjamin's nursery before he was done, but put on some of the final touches while he spent two weeks in the NICU. Before we knew whether we were having a boy or a girl, Ryan and I decided that we wanted our child's bedroom to be light blue. Blue is my favorite color, and I don't find it restrictive to either gender.

 This is Ballpark Bob-- I got him on a flash sale at Gilt with a store credit. Love him! You might remember him from one of Benjamin's first pictures...

We stuck with white furniture since we already had the dresser and bookcase from my college bedroom. The knobs were crystal, so we swapped those out for a more masculine navy gingham to match the crib skirt that my mom made. Instead of purchasing a large bedding set, we picked out 5 different sets of sheets.

All of the sheets are some variation of red/blue and coordinate with the room. This was a huge money saver, and you're not supposed to use the bumpers anyways.

For his gallery wall, we picked some fun art prints that matched the room and had meaning to our family. We also chose two empty frames that we filled with images from his newborn shoot. I knew I wanted a large B, which we purchased at JoAnn unfinished and spray painted red to match the red frame. We also spray painted the mat on one of the frames so we'd have 3 red items to tie things together.

The planes were a last minute find that Ryan picked up at a model home sale. They're adorable, and I love how Ryan hung them from the ceiling. This lamp is super cute because its 3 way, so at night we only have on the tiny light inside the cockpit.

Sources: 

Paint: Benjamin Moore
Dresser & Bookcase: Shabby Chic, Target
Gingham Knobs: Etsy
Crib: Lauren by Graco
Crib Skirt: Made by mom
Drapes: Made by mother in law
Glider: Dutalier, purchased secondhand and reupholstered
Planes & Lamp: Purchased at model home sale
Art: Etsy, message be about specifics if you're interested

Eggs in Purgatory

We were in a pinch for dinner last night, and I didn't want to default to just eating junk. This recipe from Skinny Taste popped into my head and it was a cinch to make. We didn't have harissa, so I used spicy red curry paste instead. Super quick to make and it was ready to eat within 15 minutes from start to finish. Skinny Taste is my go-to website for dinner solutions, and I've been following Gina for years. If you're not a reader already, I recommend you start. And check out her Pinterest-- all the recipes are listed there.

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2013/04/harissa-eggs-in-purgatory.html


The Harissa sauce sounds delicious, but the vendor she recommended charges $8 for shipping on Amazon. And if there's anything I refuse to pay for it's shipping! Does anybody have a good harissa brand to recommend?

Mother's Day: Love Each Other

http://pinterest.com/pin/32862272252644599/

Hug your mom if you’re close to her. Call her if you’re not. Tell her how much she means to you and how much you love her. Apologize for being a brat when you were in high school and tell her that after all this time, she really was right. Whether she carried you for 9 months and brought you into this world. Whether she exhausted emotions, time, and money to adopt you into her own family and give you a life you wouldn’t otherwise have. Thank her, cherish her. She hasn’t had a good night sleep since you were born. She worries about you, but knows you’re strong enough to make it in this world.

Also, don’t forget the women in your life who are like a mother to you. Your grandma, your aunt, neighbor, mentor, sister, or a close friend. Any woman who provides you with inspiration, drive, encouragement, and love should be celebrated this weekend. And on that note, it’s not just women. Some children grow up with the loss of a mother and have a father who takes on the role of both parents. That man deserves to be celebrated on mother’s day as well. Most of all, just love each other.

Sephora VIB Sale

Sephora is having their VIB friends and family sale again. Use code CHIC to receive 15% off your online purchase now through April 21st. Here are some of my favorite products, and some I'll be picking up during the sale.

Nano Eyeliner (sapphire is my favorite)

Phyto Vitamins

Philosophy Dark Spot

And these are products that I get for my husband.

Shaveworks: The Cool Fix

Jack Black Cool Moisture Body Lotion

What are your favorite products from Sephora? Do you have a recommendation for something I should try out? My birthday is May 4th, so I'm eligible for their birthday gift. This year's gift is a pack of favorites from Benefit and I'm really excited about it!

Benjamin 4 Months

Here's Benjamin's 4 month photo. He had his four month pediatrician appointment today and weighed in at 13.12 lbs.

It's hard to believe he was a preemie and born at 4lbs. I added a picture below from the week we brought him home. Glad we took so many photographs because I already can't remember him being that small!

His milestones lately have been smiling and laughing. He's working on supported sitting up, and still needs a little bit of assistance when in his bumbo. Today we're going to try feeding his first vegetable. Wish us luck!

Opening Day 2013

It's opening day! Ryan is super excited about the start of the Braves season, and Benjamin has tons of onesies to match. I'm trying to think of some cute dinner ideas that center around ballpark food. So far I have hot dogs and soft pretzels...you'll find me on Pinterest from now until dinner time!

Outdoor Curtains

I saw a post recently on one of my favorite home blogs, 4 Men 1 Lady, about outdoor curtains. We have a little covered back porch, and I'd love to get some curtains for it. The houses in our neighborhood are pretty close together and it'd be nice to have some privacy for summer nights. The exterior colors of our house are a light and medium olive, and I'd like the drapes to coordinate with the living room, since you can see it right through the windows. Here's some fabrics I like--

PK Lifestyles Pretty Edgy

Robert Allen: Nautical Sand Dune

Richloom Solarium Cruze Summer

Best Coin Ever Spent

I saw this video over the weekend on Facebook and just had to share. How beautiful is this music? I love seeing the wonder in everybody's faces, especially the children. Now that is a flash mob!

Hello, Spring

Happy Spring, friends! Hopefully the weather is springy and lovely where you are. In our neck of the woods, Denver, we're about to get an early spring snowstorm. The estimated accumulation is about 8 inches, so I'm going to pick up a redbox and some provisions for us to have warm, comforting meals over the weekend.

Spring means so much more to me this year than it ever has. I love the idea of fresh buds popping up, and new life taking form. We had a long fall and winter, hunkered down in our house when we weren't at the hospital receiving treatment or surgeries. The change in season is giving me renewed energy for my new, healthy life ahead. I'm almost halfway done with radiation and can see the sunshine ahead!

Cute "Mom" Shoes

Earlier this week I posted about designer collaborations for Sperry and Keds. I had some store credits, so I picked up two of my own. Opting for more classic (and affordable) styles, I wanted some cute, functional "mom shoes". Something that I could get on easily, wear with most of my outfits, and easily go from the grocery store to the park. Here's what I got-- what do you think?

Navy Blue Keds

(best price I found is from DSW)

Audrey by Sperry
(use Ebates for Piperlime)

By Your Side

After everything I've been through emotionally over the course of my diagnosis and treatment, everything has seemed different. Songs, poems, books, movies, that I experienced pre-cancer have taken on such different meanings during my treatment. This song is no exception. This experience can be, and is, very isolating. Not only is it really strange to have breast cancer at 25, and it's not something that a lot of people can relate to, as hard as they try. On that same token, it's nice to know that we're never alone. This song reminds me of holding onto God, but at the same time fighting back and wondering how he could let this happen to me.

Radiation is my first treatment where I have to be completely by myself, whereas Ryan was with me during all chemo and Benjamin was sweetly inside me during any surgery, I'm in a cold room of big machines being spoken to through a speaker in the ceiling. I've turned to comforting music that remind me I'm never alone. Whatever it takes to help me get through these 30 treatments, right?

By Your Side: Tenth Avenue North
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHgNCj4DU_M


Why are you striving these days
Why are you trying to earn grace
Why are you crying
Let me lift up your face
Just don't turn away

Why are you looking for love
Why are you still searching
As if I'm not enough
To where will you go child
Tell me where will you run
To where will you run

'Cause I'll be by your side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Look at these hands at my side
They swallowed the grave on that night
When I drank the world's sin
So I could carry you in
And give you life
I want to give you life

And I'll be by your side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Here at my side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

'Cause I, I love you
I want you to know
That I, yeah I'll love you
I'll never let you go, no, no

And I'll be by your side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Here at my side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you
Here at my side, my hands are holding you

Designer Collaborations: Keds and Sperry

Lately I was looking into some options for "mom" shoes. Shoes that are still fashionable, but easy to get on and off and chase my little guy around when the weather gets nice. Sperry and Keds came to mind. I had credits for Piperlime and DSW so was able to get a pair of each on the cheap. While I opted for the more traditional styles, Angelfish Sperry and Navy Keds, I couldn't help but notice the super stylist collaborations with these two designers and two high end designers.

Milly for Sperry

Kate Spade for Keds

These collections run more expensive since they're high end designer collaborations, and if we had some extra cash right now I would definitely spring for a pair! How fun are these styles?