Eat What Feels Good

17/01/2025

“It makes us uncomfortable to see others hurting, so if we get the outward impression that they’re not too upended by a crisis, then we can breathe a sigh of relief. Everything’s cool? Okay, cool.

On the flip side of the same coin, we tend to sugarcoat our own suffering and highlight the silver linings to make others feel better- to “fake it until we make it” in a way. We “at least” ourselves because it is painful to focus on the negatives. “At least he didn’t suffer,” “at least they caught it early,” etc. It doesn’t mean the upsides are untrue, and I’m not suggesting we ignore the positives in favor of despair. It just feels important to lift the veil on the humanity of all of this. It’s tough, it’s messy and it’s ubiquitous.”

This is an excerpt from my latest blog article entitled “What Does It Mean To ‘Handle It Well?’” and it is up on my website now if you’d like to continue reading 🫶🏼

*This article was mostly written on 10/18/24 and found while cleaning out my emails. I say this because the perspective is from before my double mastectomy, while I was still processing my decision…

15/09/2024

Things we’ve made since school started 🤗.
Even though I don’t work in education, I always see the school year as a fresh start. We’ve finally started meal planning again and I have enjoyed putting more time into cooking and putting some of our faves back in the rotation.

Always looking for more inspo- what’s on your meal plan this week? Which one of these peaks your interest most? 👇🏼

💙 BigAzz salads with grilled shrimp, avocado and homemade creamy balsamic
💙 Beef & Pork Meatloaf with mashed potatoes, brown gravy and broccoli
💙 Spaghetti Squash Bolognese
💙 Chicken Tortilla-less soup
💙 Butterflied & grilled whole chicken with grilled veggies and seasoned rice

12/08/2024

Just a little solidarity to all the moms out there who are on a trip disguised as a vacation 🫶🏼

YES we are making memories with our beloved children and getting sun-kissed photos to post and letting them try new things and it’s magical at times. This is true.

They’re building bonds with their cousins and winning belly flop contests at the pool and eating lots of ice cream and feeding the ducks and this is all true.

But they’re also melting down at dinner and making too much noise in the restaurant and running around the lobby and asking for snacks every 5 minutes and getting grumpy and getting sunburned and the salt water is stinging their face and will you just get them another towel already!?

😮‍💨. I’m so thankful for my siblings (including my spouse’s siblings) because the company is making it all worth it. I reeeeeaaaaaalllllyyyy do love family vacation. It’s just also okay to acknowledge that it’s a lot!

Can I get a vacation after my vacation? Asking for myself and for all the parents out there making core memories for and with their children 🥰

31/07/2024

This list isn’t exhaustive and doesn’t encompass all of my qualities. Here’s the gist, though.

I want my community to know who I am- which is much more than a postpartum educator. I’m a mom of 3. I am a deeply empathetic person. I get in my own way all the time bc I’m trying to anticipate the feelings or reactions of others. I vote blue. I care deeply about the rights of women and the LGBTQIA+ community. I own chucks and pearls.

I am also damn good at tie dye. My go-to karaoke song is “something to talk about” by Bonnie Raitt. I love bathing suits even though I feel uncomfy in them sometimes. I love Taylor but didn’t make it to the Eras Tour. I love my big family and the Phillies. My fave part of pregnancy was the kicking. If you ask for my opinion, you’re getting it. Go Birds. 🦅

Tell me something about yourself! Do we align!? 🫶🏼🩵

31/07/2024

Hey, new moms! This is for you ♥️

We all want to be better NOW 😤.

We just went through several months of unprecedented (for us) body transformations. Our bodies just allowed for a human or humans to exit it, through whatever means necessary 🫣.

We are ready to feel like ourselves again!

The hard part is waiting. We MUST be patient with ourselves. The serious changes our bodies just went through require extensive healing- internally, externally and hormonally! It’s a lot.

Even when we feel much better, we STILL need to remember to take it easy.

I remember my first long walk after my 3rd baby. I felt great at first and then after 30 min I felt weak and even a little dizzy. My bleeding even increased briefly after that.

My suggestion is to listen to your body, but to also remember that you may need to rest for longer than you think.

Seeing a pelvic floor specialist can help guide you on your individual journey. Generalized precautions are helpful, but we are all different and thus have different healing timelines.

For any seasoned moms out there- did your healing take more time than you thought? Or were you surprised at how good you felt? Let everyone know in the comments! 👇🏼

30/07/2024

Take a listen to my newest podcast guest spot, talking all about pregnancy, birth and postpartum!

‎Show With Strength, Ep The Ultimate Guide to Pregnancy Prep: Priorities for Every Stage with Amy Spofford - Jul 22, 2024

24/07/2024

Healing from something that’s difficult to prepare for and that few people talk about can be confusing and overwhelming- not to mention painful!

Some people tear, some people don’t. Some people have scheduled cesareans and some people have emergency ones. Some have precipitous births (very quick) and some are in labor for days.

So many of these factors are unpredictable, and even in the most predictable situations, there is still so much unknown and being experienced for the first time.

I have had 3 very different birth experiences, and I am confident that if I had a fourth (I won’t) it would be different as well.

These tips are not medical advice and cannot possibly apply universally. However, if we are aware of some healing tips before we go through it, we may be better able to pivot as needed and get our needs met more efficiently.

So much more can be said about each of these items! It’s all covered in my course, but I’ll continue to post free content on here to help as many prospective and new moms as I can!

Please add any strategies that worked for you in the comments so we can normalize helping each other get through these little-talked-about hard things ♥️

20/07/2024

My second article is live! If you’re interested, it’s a quick read! 🥰

https://www.brainzmagazine.com/post/good-grief-cherishing-the-lasts-of-parenting

15/07/2024

I didn’t realize how fun parenting could be. This list doesn’t capture it all, of course, but here are some of my faves.

I NEEDED to make this carousel because sometimes when I’m in the weeds of schedules and dinners and grocery trips and camps and daycare splash days and working, it’s easy to forget the things that make it all worth it. Sometimes those things are big and sometimes they’re little.

This list is not exhaustive, but here it is:

🩷Kids are hilarious- the first time you genuinely belly laugh bc of something your kid says or does, you’re gonna be hooked on that feeling and want more.

💛Baby smiles are the absolute best- and to think, they don’t know to smile for a picture so they’re smiling at YOU. The purest, unfettered joy.

🩵Babies CAN bring partners closer. I’m not saying have a baby to save the marriage 😬 but if you already have a solid foundation, seeing your partner become a parent can draw you even closer.

💜Kids fight, that’s normal. But seeing them love each other and become best friends is the sweetest thing, and yes, you can take a little credit for that 😘

❤️Matching is cute and fun and I don’t care if it’s nerdy. I’ll match my friends, my siblings, anyone who will let me. If my kids want to match me for a short time? I am so there.

🧡Baby snuggles feel like a bundle of pure love in your lap. Like core memories absorbing into both your bodies. Nothing better.

💙2nd generation friends are so freakin cool to see. It can be a lot of pressure at times bc you want/need them to like each other, but when it works it’s magic.

🖤Playing with your old toys is nostalgic and fun. I knew there was a reason why I saved my butterfly clips and Polly pockets and pink Barbie limo.

💚Nights out feel extra special when you spend most of your free time cleaning up boogers and breaking up childrens’ tiffs. It’s important to remind yourself how damn cute and fun you can be 🫣

23/06/2024

https://www.brainzmagazine.com/post/7-things-all-new-parents-need-to-know

When did it become normalized to judge new parents? It is quite unfriendly given that we don't know how anyone else's situation...

16/06/2024

It’s amazing to see my kids getting the kind of Dad I had myself 🥰. Loving, fun, attentive and so, so proud.

This privilege is not lost on me. I’m grateful for the 30 years I had with my Dad and sad for my kids that they never got to meet him. Grateful they have another Poppop to love them and for all of the other amazing role models my kids have in their lives (especially their super fun uncles and great uncles and first-cousins-once-removed and friends that feel like family)! 💙

12/06/2024

And I want to hear what’s going on with YOU! 🌅

This Spring has been a whirlwind and I fear the summer is going to fly as well 😭.

I have not been as active on here lately, and I’m sure my reasons aren’t unique. Often, I bust my butt to make content and it doesn’t pay off, no one sees it and it feels like I’m shouting into a void. Therefore, motivation wanes to spend the time on it.

A better and more exciting reason, though, is that I have other things going on IRL that seem to hold more tangible outcomes, like turning my course into an entire book that you will be able to HOLD, booking podcast spots to share my takes on postpartum and mom life, and writing articles that will actually be published in an online magazine!

As these things develop for me professionally, I’ll keep you updated, and you’ll be seeing pieces of my personal life on here, too.

I am all for sharing the little wins along the way, and I want to hear yours as well!

PLEASE! Share a win of yours with me below or tell me how crazy I am for overloading my plate yet again 😅