Today is DAY ONE

I've always had a pretty bad sweet tooth. I remember after school as a kid sneaking an extra Little Debbie snack. Oh, those fudgy brownies were so good! And the NutterButters! Who can resist peanut butter and chocolate?

When I was living in the dorms in college, I couldn't believe that there were frozen yogurt machines right there in the cafeteria. So, I would make sensible (well, about as sensible as cafeteria food can be) choices for dinner, and treat myself to dessert almost daily.

After college, I began to make better choices - but still not great. I was a sucker for sweet snacks. I would have yogurt covered raisins or dark chocolate almonds and tell myself these were healthy indulgences.

Then I had kids and I tried to tighten up my eating habits, but that sugar thing is hard to kick. I found my sleep-deprived self reaching for more chocolate, more "health" bars,  and more ice cream. On top of that, I was baking more often too. I would cut slice after slice of my "healthy" banana bread - made with dark chocolate chips, of course - and tell myself it was okay because it was healthy or because "I didn't really eat lunch".  I found myself always thinking about my next treat. My body was craving them. It could not get enough - the minute I had a little, I wanted more.

Sugar is a powerful addiction. Even as powerful as some street drugs.

I kept thinking, "I need to do something to fix this," but I didn't know what to do. I knew I couldn't do it alone. I had been thinking about doing a juice cleanse, but they're pretty expensive, and I wasn't sure that it would be effective. Plus, I would be pretty cranky surviving on juice for a few days (I can't imagine I would have the support of my husband and kids on that one!) It seemed like it would be a temporary fix to my big problem.

I kept telling myself I would do something about it the next day, or the next week, or after this cup of ice cream. Months went by of me feeding myself this excuse - and then the opportunity to do Arbonne's 28 Day Detox program came along. A few of my other Arbonne sisters were doing it, so I figured "why not? - at least I'll have a support network for when the chocolate chips in my pantry start talking to me."

So I signed up, and I ordered my detox supplies from Arbonne.

I prepped for it all last week because Arbonne is awesome and knows that to make a life change as big as this one people need guidance and support, and they provide that through a private Facebook group. I listened to recordings explaining the ins and outs of the program, and why balancing blood sugar and pH is so important. I read about clean eating, and how to change my philosophy towards food. I reviewed lists of foods to avoid, foods to eat, and recipes for week one. I bought vegetables, fruits, beans, and whole grains, and I prepped detox friendly snacks.

For the next 28 days, I will be eliminating dairy, gluten, soy, peanuts, sugar, artificial sweeteners, coffee, alcohol, fruits (with the exception of limes, lemons, green apples, and berries), white potatoes, non-cage free eggs, corn, nitrates, MSG and vinegar. (Detoxers also eliminate certain meats but since I am a vegetarian, I don't have to worry about those.)

Sounds a little intense and scary, right?

I'm talkin' no morning coffee and no evening glass of wine. How is a mother supposed to survive?!

At first, I was worried. But, as I learned the facts about why I was eliminating these things from my diet and how it would benefit my body, I became really excited. Our leader for the detox promised us that nothing we would have eaten if we weren't on this detox would taste as good as we are going to feel. That got my attention.

This detox is going to help me feel better. It's going to create balance inside my body. It's going to give me more energy - something I feel like I'm in short supply of, and desperately need to keep up with my boys. It's going to clean the toxins from my body - toxins that are there from the food I ate, the environment, and what I used to put on my skin. I'm removing the things that do not serve me from my body and my diet - I'm going to learn to see food as fuel.

I'm doing this to quit my sweet tooth for good. I am also doing this because I want my body - inside and out - to be in the best condition it can be. Looking at cancer and other disease statistics, I want to know that I am doing everything I can to keep myself healthy. But there are so many other reasons why people are choosing to participate in this program. Some are looking to lose weight. Some have hit plateaus in their weight loss and are doing this program to reset their metabolism. Others are looking to recharge their health. This program has been designed to help all of us succeed no matter what our end goal is.

I want to be the trailblazer for getting myself and my family on a healthier path.

Today is DAY ONE of my first detox and a big step towards a healthier life.

Join me on my first detox on instagram / facebook / twitter  and see how you can transform your health too.

Belief and a Change

This summer has completely gotten away from me.

I have been in non-stop "go mode" since May. I started a big project at work that has kept me up working late at night every night. Its great because we can certainly use the extra money, but it's been so hard on me physically and emotionally, and I know its been hard on my boys as well.

Staying at home with our children is not something my husband and I planned for, to be honest. I was sure that I would want to work - but then I saw my firstborn's pure, sweet face, felt his little body in my arms, and stared into his eyes that looked up at me knowing that I would take care of him. I knew in those moments that I was not meant to return to work. And ever since that rainy October day, we've been working to find the best way for me to be at home.

For almost four years, it's like I've been swimming upstream, trying to provide some financial freedom for my family and enabling myself to stay at home without a stressful work situation. I'm working long and hard and trying to keep my head above water. Each time I think I'm making progress, we get hit with an unplanned expense - car repairs, dental work, unexpected house work, et cetera - and then we're back to where we started or worse - further behind. Debt kept growing and my love for the way I was living my life was not.

I had been trying to think of ways to stay afloat. All of them involved working more hours, which would mean paying for childcare and/or losing my weekend. I did the math ten different ways, and even if I worked full time again, I would still make the same amount that I do now after paying for childcare. And I could not stand the thought of losing my weekends. I have already lost all time with my husband during the week, because I literally tuck my children in and turn on my work laptop and work until I go to sleep.

I felt stressed from having work hang over my head every day. 

I felt frustrated knowing that I was working and working, and it was just providing us with the ability to hang on. 

I felt distant from my husband because I hardly had more than five minutes each day to talk to him. 

I felt cranky with my children because I was constantly getting too little sleep. 

I am grateful for my job, its flexibility, and its ability to pay the bills, but it just wasn't making me happy.

As parents, we are willing to make crazy sacrifices like these for our children, but what if there was something better?

For me that is Arbonne. It's going to be my life raft.

So, I knew someone from a moms' group that I'm a part of that sells Arbonne. I would see her post different things on facebook about how thankful she was for her job and the amazing blessings it was providing her family. I thought, "Hmm... now that is something you rarely see, someone singing the praises of their employer and talking about how much she loves her job." I was intrigued, so we met up and she told me all about Arbonne and shortly thereafter I jumped in. 

Yes, it scared me to death. Yes, it made me uncomfortable. Yes, my brain told me in a million different ways how it would never work and how I would fail.

But one thing she said stuck with me, "Don't think about what if you fail. Try thinking about what if you succeed."

So I'm pushing on despite my fears and insecurities, because I believe the end result will be worth it. I believe that this is the way I will be able to provide my family with financial freedom, which will in turn provide us with the time freedom we so desperately want. 

I have been running my own Arbonne business for a little over a month and I have already received so many wonderful gifts. For starters, I get to do a job that I enjoy and sell something I believe in. I get to surround myself with other women and men that inspire me to be better - a better leader, and a better servant. And soon, I will be able to start giving this gift to others as I develop my team, and that makes me so excited!

I believe in Arbonne's products. I believe in the value of something that is pure, safe, and beneficial. What we are putting in our bodies and on our skin matters, and that has been at the core of Arbonne since it started about thirty years ago. Each time I bathe my babies or wash my face, I feel thankful for products that I know are safe.

I believe in Arbonne's philosophy of time leveraging and in paying it forward to help others achieve their dreams too. I have met leaders from the Chief Scientific Officer to National Vice Presidents that are passionate about Arbonne and are inspirational leaders who want to help each person use Arbonne as their vehicle to achieve the financial and time freedom that will enable them to live a life full of passion and purpose - whether it be staying at home with their children, pursuing a career in the arts, serving others through missionary work, enabling a spouse to pursue their dreams - you name it.

Most importantly, I believe in myself and my dreams for my family. I believe that with hard work and determination and lots of fun too, I will be able to open up doors for my family. This belief feels good. It is empowering. It is life-changing.

Life begins at the end of your comfort zone. 

Let's do this!

Homemade Baked Chocolate Donuts with Strawberry Glaze Icing

Well I had meant to get this recipe posted a couple days ago, but it seems the universe had other plans. Both boys caught some sort of virus that included a high fever, nasty chest cough, pink eye, and LOTS of snot. So I have spent most of the past few days cuddling, reading stories, watching movies and trying to get them to eat something... anything.

Phinn and I made these donuts for his class since he was in charge of bringing snack to school this week. He loves to be my baking assistant. He likes to help me pour ingredients in and then take a turn mixing everything together. Then he watches the oven eagerly as they bake, waiting until he can do the official taste test.

These donuts got two sticky chocolate thumbs up from Phinn and from Hubs who spotted the rows of them on the kitchen table as soon as he got home. I actually knew Phinn was sick the next morning because I offered to let him have one at breakfast and he didn't touch it. My son with the super sweet tooth, who never says no to anything chocolate ever, passed on it.

Anyway, we are all on the mend around here and just in time to enjoy all the snow we got and Valentine's day.

So without further ado, here is my very first recipe (Yay!). These are perfect if you are looking for something special and sweet to make for your Valentine(s) this weekend. While they aren't healthy so to say, they are about as healthy as a glazed donut gets ;)

Baked Chocolate Donuts with Strawberry Glaze Icing

Ingredients
Donuts:
1 1/4 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/8 tsp salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup sour cream (or you can sub plain greek yogurt)
1/2 cup milk
3 tbsp canola oil (or you can sub coconut oil)

Glaze
1 cup fresh strawberries
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat your oven to 375.

Spray your donut pan with baking spray or use butter to grease it.

Combine flour, cocoa, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and then add the vanilla, sour cream, milk, and oil. Mix until combined.

Next pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Spoon the mixture into the donut pan.

For mini donut pans bake 5-6 minutes, and for standard size donut pans bake 7-8 minutes.

Allow donuts to cool before removing from the pan and placing on a wire rack to cool completely.

For the glaze:
While the donuts are baking, cut your strawberries and place them in a blender. Blend until you have a fairly smooth puree.

Add 2/3 of the puree to a small sauce pan, bring to a boil over medium heat and reduce mixture by a third. Then add the last 1/3 of the puree to the pan, stir, and remove from heat.

Add powdered sugar, milk and vanilla to a bowl and whisk until completely mixed. Then add strawberry puree and mix again.

To glaze the donuts, I placed the donuts on wax paper and then dunked each one into the bowl of glaze. Then I placed it back on the wax paper until the glaze hardened or they were eaten...(not going to say what happened at our house)

These taste great with a cold glass of milk or a good cup of coffee which ever you prefer.

Enjoy!! Happy Valentine's Day!

Weight Loss After Two

Plateau.

That's what happened to my weight loss around the time Hudson was five months old. I extended myself some grace, because my hands were full, and I tried to have patience remembering the whole "nine months on, nine months off" thing. I kept waiting for the same super metabolism that I had after Phinn to kick in.

And I kept waiting, and waiting...

Still waiting actually.

However, I'm not waiting so passively any more. 

While I was being pretty good at working out and pretty good at eating healthy, I was being pretty terrible about snacking. During my second pregnancy, Hubs and I got into a bad habit of eating ice cream way too often, and that  habit has lingered - along with my love of dark chocolate and baked goods. 

But, I read something the other day: "abs are made 30% at the gym and 70% in the kitchen." BAM! It hit me. My eating habits are sabotaging all the hard work I'm doing. All of the results I was hoping to see from my running, Tracy Anderson DVDs (still loving her post-pregnancy DVD!), and Baby Boot Camp classes were being ruined by over indulging. 

I am working to change my eating habits, and luckily I have a great program called the Mother Love Fitness Challenge (MOLO) to help me get started. MOLO is all about setting goals for yourself and making little changes each week to help you not only reach your goal, but to change your habits for the long run. 

This first week, we started by giving up our BIG daily vice. Mine was chocolate. This isn't a permanent break-up, but I am hoping to get our relationship under control. I did find myself taking a bite of my son's cookie the other day. It was a chocolate chunk cookie that he had gotten after school, and I had only given him half of it. As soon as it was in my mouth, I remembered the challenge and spit it out. And all I could think of was the episode of Sex and the City where Miranda eats cake out of the trash. That's how bad chocolate and I have become. I am eating it without even really thinking about it.

I have read about some ways to set boundaries for yourself. If you're anything like me, the minute you deprive yourself of something, there is nothing you want more. For me, being completely restrictive would only set myself up for failure. 

One suggestion that I liked was to plan your indulgences into your week. For example, I know that Friday nights at our house are usually homemade pizza night, so I make sure my other dinners that week are healthy. That means doing things like skipping take-out and subbing spaghetti squash for noodles. 

Another tip I picked up was if you are going to indulge make it count. Skip the store-bought cookies and candy, the handful of chocolate chips, or in my case, the bite of your son's cookie, and wait for the opportunity to have something that you really want, something that is really worth the fat and calories like a homemade chocolate doughnut or your favorite dessert at your favorite local restaurant or a chocolate from Gearharts' on Valentine's Day (hint! hint!). 

Changing my eating habits is not going to be all about restricting what it is that I can eat, but it's also going to be about finding new ways to enjoy fruits and veggies more. When I started eating a vegetarian diet (well...pescatarian, because I do have seafood every couple months), I became aware of a lot of vegetables that I hardly noticed before; squash, kale, chard, fennel, beets, radishes - and I learned how to use them to make some really delicious (and some not so delicious) meals. 

These last five pounds have not gone anywhere, despite how hard I feel like I'm working. My pre-pregnancy clothes mostly fit, however, they're not nearly as comfortable as they once were. 

While there are some numbers I am trying to hit on the scale and tape measure, there's also a bigger reason. All the weight I'm carrying is lower abdominal fat, which can play a big role in health problems such as diabetes and breast cancer - both of which run in my family. Nothing can quite snap me into action as quick as the thought of having to fight cancer or even worse not being there for my boys.

So I'm going to be sharing more about my workouts, some recipes (even a few of my own!), and any other useful tips I pick up along the way. I'm going to work hard to find the balance between eating healthy, exercising, and indulging - because let's face it, life is too short not to have chocolate ;)  

Running Postpartum Round 2

After Phinn was born, it was pretty easy to fall back into running. I tried starting back around six weeks postpartum. Although I was mentally ready to run again, my body just wasn't. I tried again a few weeks later and my body was ready to go.

Once my body was on board, I was able to make time to hit the gym in the early morning or evenings, and Hubs would give Phinn a bottle. I could also do a long run on Saturdays. As Phinn got older and the weather warmer, I would strap him into the BOB, and off we would go together. I was a happy runner and a happy mama.

After Hudson was born, I started to ease back into running around seven or eight weeks postpartum, and everything was going beautifully. I still had pretty good endurance. My speed was picking up. Hudson was taking a bottle, and I was sneaking in early morning runs. I also had been hitting the treadmill during nap times.

But then, running started to become really uncomfortable about a month after resuming. Not to go into too much detail, but after running, I would have debilitating discomfort. It was as if I had a bladder infection, but I knew that was not the case. I saw my OB/GYN and she confirmed that it was not an infection and couldn't pinpoint any source for my problem, but I was still in pain after running.

Luckily, my mom is a nurse and she spoke to a urologist friend to see if he had any recommendations for me. He advised cutting out alcohol, caffeine, and spicy food, making sure I eat a clean diet, and remembering to do kegels to strengthen muscles that had been weakened by in utero baby punches and kicks.

Cutting out the spicy food I could handle. It was summer though, and who doesn't love to eat Mexican food, but I felt like I could forgo it. Giving up my coffee and wine was much more difficult, but at least it was only temporary. Once I gave my body some more time to heal, I would be able to resume enjoying my vices.

A few weeks into my new regimen, I was able to increase my distance without discomfort. I successfully trained for the Charlottesville Women's 4 Miler (a great race to run if you're local or semi-local) in August. I was able to set a new PR of 32:22. Not too shabby for someone who had a baby four months prior and had a few training set backs!

Next up was the Richmond Half Marathon in November. I had my training plan, and was ready to go. The first few weeks went well - I was meeting my mileage and still feeling strong.

As the weeks went by, and my runs were increasing in distance, I was finding it more difficult to make them happen. Hudson had started refusing bottles, so early morning runs were out. The boys were only content in the double BOB for about 3-4 miles (okay, Phinn's complaining usually started around 2 miles in, but I was usually able to distract / bribe him with animal crackers in order to make it to 4!). The only run I could reliably count on was my long Saturday run. Thank you Hubs for helping me make that happen!

Two days before the Richmond Half, I woke up with another bout of the "toddler virus" that cycles through the house every few months. My head was stuffy, my body ached, and my ears felt like they were going to explode from all the pressure. I made the call the morning of the race not to run. I was disappointed, but I knew running this race would set back my recovery from toddleritis, and I couldn't do it. Being sick as a mom makes your job exponentially more difficult.

As I reflected on my training experience, I decided to take a break from long races. It is just not feasible for me to train properly at this point in my life. It causes me to feel unnecessary stress, and it was really robbing my favorite hobby of a lot of its joy.

So, what am I up to these days?

I try to enjoy 2-3 runs during the week. They're short 2-3 mile runs, and I can easily squeeze them in during nap time or while the boys play.

On the weekends, I am still getting in my long runs - they just aren't as long as before - usually about 5-7 miles. I find these are necessary, though. It gives me an hour or so of freedom to stretch my legs and mind. It gives me an hour of silence where I can think about nothing (or everything). Even though the last few weekends have been pretty darn cold, I find myself bundling up and looking forward to feeling the cold air on my face and the invigoration I feel when I am finished.

As for my race schedule, I currently only have two races on it. The first is the Four Courts Four Miler, which is a bit of a family tradition and the second is the Monument Ave 10K.  I have been thinking of doing other races, but I'm going to take it as it comes and just enjoy my hobby and the invaluable mental and physical benefits it provides me.

Happy 9 Months Hudson Paul!

So Hudson turned nine months old over the weekend.

First, I can hardly believe it - it really is true that time speeds up for the second child, and I would imagine every child thereafter too.

Secondly, I've been feeling a bit of mommy guilt about the many empty pages of Hudson's baby book. I know this is the curse of the second child, and that many second, third, fourth children do not have the baby books that the first child does - flowery love letters and play by plays of every milestone. I'm trying to catch up, and luckily I tried to make a mental note of the big milestones so I could record them later.

So I thought to make up for some of those empty pages, I would celebrate Hudson's ninth month here.

Hudson, you have taken off ever since you hit eight months! You started crawling on Christmas. All of the crinkly wrapping paper and colorful bows were just too much for you not to get your hands on! Now you hardly hold still. Your favorite places to explore are the bathrooms, behind any door, closets, under the table, and anywhere I try to stash the vacuum cleaner your friend Mr. Vacuum.

You're excited to finally be able to get a good look at your brother's train table. You love to dismantle train tracks. You often make quite a mess out of the latest rail system that your brother's designed, but Daddy and I cover for you when he demands to know what happened. You even sometimes manage to get your little hands on a train or two. They're usually the ones your brother has cast aside, but you are happy as a clam.

You and Phinn are starting to make up some of your own games. You crawl over to the pack and play and press your face up against one side while banging on it with your chubby little hands. Phinn will go to the opposite side and pop up and say "Peek-a-boo Yo Yo!" The two of you will laugh and do it over and over again. It absolutely makes my heart overflow with joy to see you and your brother becoming buddies.

You are beginning to really enjoy eating. I pretty much give you a little bit of whatever we're eating, and you seem to prefer it that way. You were never a fan of the purees or having someone else feed you. I think we are either entering a growth spurt or all of your crawling has really increased your appetite, because I can't seem to get the food on your tray fast enough.

You absolutely love bath time. You pull yourself up on the bathtub and eagerly bang on the tub and squeal excitedly as I fill it up with water. You love to play with the bath letters and cups. I have to keep an eye on you, though, because you are always trying to drink the bath water. You even surprised me the other day by sticking your face in the water and blowing bubbles! During your first bubble bath, you seemed to be a little confused by this stuff covering up your bath water, but you figured out in no time that you could splash right through it. I'm beginning to think that between you and your brother, I am going to need to start donning my raincoat and boots when I have you two in the tub.

Hudson, you are a sweet, easy-going, happy little guy. Even though I feel like your baby time has been passing faster and faster, I make time each day to savor your babyness. Sometimes you make sure I get a good dose by waking up for cuddles in the middle of the night. I love your new toothy grin and the fits of giggles that go with it. Your chubby little cheeks are so precious, I can't seem to kiss them enough. You make us all laugh when you shake your head "no."

Nine Month Recap:

Weight: ~ 21 pounds. I am ball parking this because you don't go for your nine month check up until next week.

Sleeping: Still waking up once to cuddle with me for a little bit and then happily go back to bed. You do your best to grab a little morning nap as we drive, but you do an excellent job taking an afternoon nap usually lasting a couple hours.

Teeth: FOUR!! Two top and two bottom! You got them all at once. You were such a trooper.

Hair: LOTS! You still have so much hair. I think we may be taking you for your first haircut this month. Daddy will be happy, but I will probably cry.

Favorite Foods: Blueberries, mango, sweet potatoes, yogurt.

Favorite Time of Day: Tubby time!

Favorite Toys: Anything with wheels. You love pushing around cars and trucks, and you even sometimes make a little motor noise to go with it!


Hudson Paul, you've changed so much over this past month, I can't wait to see what you will be up to next!

Good-bye Cable. Hello Media Streaming!

As a kid, I remember never having cable. One of the perks of spending the night at a friend's was getting to watch Behind the Music or Say What Karaoke. I always thought I would have cable when I grew up - and I did for a few years, but we've been cable free now for almost three years now. We actually don't even get the basic network channels.

We weren't against cable at first. We had gone without it during our first few years of marriage, during which Hubs and I took turns balancing on one foot, sticking out our tongues, and scratching our head while holding the rabbit ears so we could get a slightly less fuzzy version of whoever's TV show was currently on.

Then we moved, and weren't able to pick up anything with the rabbit ears, so we sprung for cable. Not only did we get hundreds of channels, but we even had a DVR.

A few years later, we moved again and decided to go without cable to save money.

Now in the twenty-first century, I bet a lot of you are wondering how can we survive without TV.

Well, instead of paying $100+ a month for cable, we pay $7.99 for Netflix instant streaming and $7.99 for Hulu Plus. So, that is a savings of $84 per month. That's like a date night, or two jumbo boxes of diapers (depending on what's higher on the priority list this month).

We also have Amazon Prime (which is $79 a year), which we use mostly for the shipping upgrade because of all the diapers, baby/toddler gear, and everything else we purchase there - but I've recently discovered their great "Watch Instantly" video library.

I don't have time for TV, and I certainly don't have time for TV on its schedule, so these alternative options are perfect for me.

So here's what we are currently watching:

Hulu Plus

I have quite a few guilty pleasure shows that I watch here. I'm currently hooked on:

Revenge: I love mystery and suspense and enjoy trying to stay one step ahead of the plot. Each time I think it's close to the end, they throw in another twist. This show is in season three and I'm still enjoying it. It is an interesting plot of a daughter avenging her father's death, but the story line isn't designed to be a long series at least in my opinion. I'm sure by the end of this season the show will be on life support and the episodes will be too far fetched. When that happens, I will quit watching it because free time is currency in a house with children and you have to spend it wisely!

Nashville: Can I just have Connie Britton's hair please?! She was great in Friday Night Lights and I have enjoyed watching her in this role too.

The Good Wife: This show satisfies the side of me that once dreamed about going to law school. I know it's a TV show, and I know legal drama is far from the truth of a real courtroom, but I enjoy it. I enjoy seeing the internal conflict some of these lawyers manage when representing guilty clients or big bad corporations.

The Hubs has his shows as well. He enjoys watching Community which I can get on board with every once and a while. The episode "Basic Intergluteal Numismatics" episode  absolutely killed me! It's an issue some people...ahem..around our house struggle with. He also watches Key & Peele, but that's not really my thing.

Some of the shows that we share are The Daily Show, The Colbert Report (See, you can still get your news without CNN and FOX. I used to say that sarcastically, but I have actually come to believe that their reporting is if not as good, possibly better than cable news channels.), the occasional SNL, and of course Parks & Recreation - our Friday evening tradition.

Netflix

What do you do when your three year old wakes you up at 5:30 AM and your sleep deprived self is not ready to function? You catch a cartoon or two on Netflix, so your toddler is happily occupied and you can ease into the morning. Needless to say, Phinn, our energetic, early riser has enjoyed some Netflix lately. Some of his current favorites are Curious George, Justin Time, The Magic School Bus, and Phineas & Ferb.

Netflix also has some great full length children's movies if you're looking for something for family movie night. We have watched The Lorax and The Polar Express (more times than I can count!) and I'm thinking about showing some of the older Disney movies such as The Sword and The Stone and The Great Mouse Detective.

Hubs and I have been watching Freaks & Geeks - with a young James Franco, Seth Rogen, and Jason Segel, which is an underrated one season sitcom from 1999. Some of the movies on our list to watch include Say Anything, which is an 80's cult classics starring John Cusack and has the infamous scene of him in his girlfriend's front yard holding a boombox playing "In Your Eyes," and Broken Flowers, a Bill Murray movie from 2005 which he claimed to be his best role yet.

Most of all, we're eagerly awaiting the return of House of Cards! If you have not checked out this Netflix series starring Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright, I cannot recommend it enough, especially if you enjoy political dramas. I will say, at times it made me disgusted. I wonder how accurately it depicts the political arena and the DC world  in general. It's all food for thought and can make for great debates (or politician slamming).

Amazon Prime

We've been slow at integrating Amazon into our media streaming, but lately we have been perusing their movie selection to save ourselves $1.26 by skipping Redbox (Okay, I'll be honest - it's usually upwards of $3, because I tend to fall asleep and need another night or two to finish the movie!) Some of the movies on our watch list include: The Truman Show, Waking Ned Devine, Sleepers, and The Painted Veil.

I used Amazon Prime to watch Dowtown Abbey for free. The only downside is that I can't watch it until the season is over unless I want to pay $2.99 / episode.

I will say, the one downside to not having cable is not having a sports package. Not that we usually have time to sit down and watch a whole game, but I know Hubs would love to watch more Hokie football and I could do with more STL Cardinals baseball - and we both could use some March Madness. We did look into getting a sports package, but it wasn't worth the cost. Maybe in a few years when the boys are more interested in games and there is a more reasonable option available.

So, if you're interested in saying "good riddance!" to overly priced cable that comes with all those channels that never have anything on, or if you've already broken up with cable and our looking for some media streaming options, definitely check these out.

If you are already hip to this, let me know some of your favorites. I'm always looking for new options to add to my queue!