Trust Me I'm a (mom)(yogi) RD

Recently our family (along with Dee's little brother) took yet another long weekend summer vacation; this time around we visited Texas for a family reunion.  I had never been to Texas and was excited for Eli and I to meet more of Dee's relatives...what I was not looking forward to, however, was the 12-hour road trip there.  Yes, we were crazy and drove!  Add in a small vehicle and nursing infant to the mix, you'd think we had set up a recipe for disaster...but actually our small getaway turned out great.  No doubt, the drive was VERY long, but we got to enjoy some scenic views... Who knew the South could be so hilly, yet also seem MORE flat than Iowa at the same time!? Eli was also a good sport on our long journey ;-) We left Iowa Friday evening around 10 p.m. and arrived in Childress, TX Saturday morning just in time for the reunion.  I met key family members: uncles, aunts, cousins, Eli's great grandma...along with a large handful of family f...

A few months ago I was at an elementary school teaching Pick a Better Snack lessons when a teacher/friend of mine shared a few products she had recently started selling.  I had an hour break between my classes, so we relaxed in her office while she told me about her new business venture as a Perfectly Posh independent consultant.  At the time I had never heard of it before, but I listened because the products smelled yummy, and I liked that they contained natural-based products and essential oils. My friend (Katie) even recommended a body creme that would be good for my son's eczema.  With having tried so many products already and having little success, I was hopeful these Posh products would do the trick. Before I left Katie wrote me a list of possible items I should check out and I was on my way. I checked out the Posh website and added a few 'maybes' in my online cart.  On pay day Friday I spent over an hour debating what items to actually purch...

Growing up I always enjoyed being physically active - whether it be basketball, swimming, cheerleading, or dance - I was always busy.  Of course the past few years have brought some changes to my life: graduating college, getting married, getting a "big girl" job; but I still tried to make exercise a priority.  I took long walks in the summer, tried fitness classes at gyms; I even found my love of yoga!  This led to me becoming a certified instructor and then teaching at a local gym and studio 4x/week...not to mention trying to practice yoga on top of that.  Did I mention I like to stay busy? ;) However, my biggest life change of all came last year when I found out I was pregnant.  During those 9 months I was constantly hot, exhausted, nauseous, suffered from extreme headaches and had to pee every 30 minutes (this is not an exaggeration)!  Working out was not something I looked forward to, and I...

As a retail dietitian, I've noticed over the years that clients and customers are obsessed with weight. By definition, the weight of an object only refers to the numerical value of its gravitational pull;  even though this number would be strikingly different depending on which planet we were on, it somehow has the power to either make a person on earth feel "great" and "beautiful;" or "frustrated" and "worthless." In my current job, I conduct biometric screenings for employees and customers.  While this simple fingerstick gives a good snapshot on a person's internal health - cholesterol, blood sugar, triglycerides, etc. -  I've recently become more aware of people's fear with the scale.  I often hear "This is the part I've been dreading!"  or "I've been really bad this week, I just know I've gained 'xyz' pounds!"  I never say this aloud, but when I hear these phrases I always think "...