All posts by R.C. Liley

I'm an ex-mutual fund accountant who left the cubicle world to be a stay-at-home dad to my beautiful little girl, Avery, who entered our life on 11/15/13 and handsome little boy, Wes, who joined our family on 11/19/17. Also happily married to my wife, Kelley, as of 8/17/07. Sorry ladies... :) Fitness and nutrition is of the utmost importance in our family and we strive to reflect this in our daily life. I always prepare our meals at home and only go out if it's a special occasion, and even then I tend to not get much. Food should be fun and a joy to eat, not something quickly consumed from a fast food chain or scarf down before the next meeting. I have come from strictly logging high miles to train for the next marathon to keeping exercise varied and focusing more on strength. I still enjoy going for a run when I can, but nothing crazy, and I prefer hill sprints while pushing my daughter, Avery in the stroller. She loves it and I get a great workout! I want to show the world how to appreciate their body and feed it real, wholesome food while moving more throughout the day. In doing so, everyone would be healthier, happier, and we'd all live in a better place as a result. I blog mainly about my life as a stay-at-home dad and frequently include reviews, participate in campaigns, and share my thoughts on fitness and nutrition. If you ever have any questions or thoughts to share, please reach out as I'm always open to listening or helping others however possible. That is, when I have free time since Avery is and my wife are the number one priorities!

18 Memories From My 18th Month Since ‘Going Dad’

The months and memories have been flying by, and now we’re a year and half into this parenting gig. From what I hear, it only gets better with time, and so far, I would have to agree.

What’s better at this point; saying “18 months” or saying “a year and a half”? I’ve heard people refer to their kids’ age up to 24 months and that’s the max for me.

At 2 years, I’d say we can get rid of the months reference. Or maybe it would be cool to go retro and use weeks. Maybe even put 104 candles in a cake for their 2nd birthday. Actually, it would be 104.355 candles.

2 Years to Weeks Calc

Anyway, I’m still not feeling well from my butt issue the other day, so lets get on to these memories.

1. Avery, Mommy and I have known you were crazy for a long time, but now even the way you fall asleep has reached a new level of crazy.

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2. Your crazy sleep position was the same day you had a mystery rash that didn’t seem to bother you but looked horrible. Luckily, it came and went away within a couple days.

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3. That rash appeared the same time you became really ill with the highest fever to date. We missed seeing our crazy little girl run circles around the house, but it was kind of sweet to have in such a cuddly mood.

Avery Cuddles_Sick

4. You figured out your diaper a few months ago, but never repeatedly pulled it off until recently. When it’s just you and me, your diaper stays put, but when Mommy comes you, you go right for those snaps. No matter how many times we put it back on, you just undo it right away. So we’ve taken to duct tape diapering which proves quite effective despite the trashy look.

duct tape cloth diaper

 

5. I had a NuttZo tasting party for our neighbors to try all of the delicious varieties, and you took advantage of all the samples with gusto! I’m surprised there was any left for our guests!

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6. Rain has taken over pretty much the entire month, but we didn’t let it stop us from our daily walks. I even wore you in the Onya NexStep baby carrier which had been a while since the last time we walked with you on my back.

7. On our rainy walks, we found and rescued several turtles, big and small, by returning them to one of the lakes in our neighborhood. You’re still not sure what to make of them, but we have plenty of time for you to get the turtle experience. Except for the last one we saved, he almost bit off my fingers!

8. You’ve exclusively had Mommy’s milk and water for drinks until this past month when I introduced you to Zevia. I explained how it’s a great treat to enjoy after playing under the hot Texas sun or anytime really, and how it’s worlds better than other sugary or artificially sweetened alternatives. Obviously, you like it and will be enjoying Zevia with Mommy and me for a long time to come.

9. One day, during lunch, I picked your nose. Then I posted it for the world to see. You can hit me for this later.

10. Turtles aren’t the only wildlife in our neighborhood. We have been watching these 8 goslings grow into the full-grown geese that they are as we pass them on our daily walks. The Mommy and Daddy aren’t too friendly as seen when they stick their tongue out at us. but you can’t blame them for being protective. Just so you know, I’d stick my tongue out at people to protect you too!

11. I found my old boots I had as a kid and, like any parent would do, we put them on you to take pictures. The results were pure cuteness as always. You also seemed to enjoy the clunking noise you made when walking.

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12. One of the days that gave us sun instead of rain happened to be on the weekend, and Mommy had the awesome idea to bring you to a splash pad. It was your first time and although you weren’t too interested in the actual water part, we had fun slinging you around in the water.

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13. During dinnertime, where we usually take turns feeding you with our utensil or putting food for you to grab, we gave you a try at using the spoon yourself. After a few fumbles, you successfully brought food to your mouth several times! Yay, trial and error!

14. A current favorite of yours for breakfast is sliced banana with NuttZo. You are practically crying with impatience the moment I show you the banana, but once you get that first bite, it’s bliss!

15. Keeping still is not your forte, but running around and playing with several toys at once is. I’ll go about my business cooking our next meal or washing dishes as you go crazy all around me. Of course I’ll stop to read a book or three and throw the ball too!

16. Right after writing a post about your bottom lip, you went and busted the thing while playing with Mommy’s sweater. That was your first of many more to come, I’m sure.

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17. Mommy had a blast with you bouncing on our bed and trying to take pictures of when you were 6 months old. Turns out, you’re a little more mobile than you were back then. But still freakin’ cute as ever!

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18. You have a growing collection of balls that I’ve been finding on our walks and they provide plenty of entertainment for you at home. You’re even learning how to put them all in your basket when done. They usually come right back out, but it’s a start!

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The fun times just keep getting more and more interactive as she grows. I remember when Avery was just 6 months old, someone told me how it starts getting really good at 18 months. Now that we’re here, I’m excited to see this for myself since she’s already fun as it is.

Maybe actually talking or at least being more clear about her wants/needs? Yeah, I know, doubtful. Guess we’ll find out now!!

When did you start using years instead of months to give your child’s age?

What’s something noteworthy about your kid from this past month?

 

 

Guess What Ass Won’t Let Me Run A Half-Marathon

I’ve been talking about running the Mother’s Day half-marathon that was delayed to the weekend after Mother’s Day for a while now. You know, the one that got rained/lightninged (word?) out so I indoor rowed the 13.1 miles in our garage before kicking off the Mother’s Day celebration.

Although the forecast is calling for more crappy rain through next Sunday, when the race was rescheduled, I doubt it will be anything severe enough to be cancelled again. But I already know my running in the race is cancelled because of some ass. Can you guess who or what I’m talking about?

Yeah, it’s MY ass!

Disclosure: Some details (words, not pictures) may be too graphic for those faint of heart. Consider this your warning before you continue reading.

Starting around last weekend, I noticed a little lump on the inner part of my butt (hey, it happens), and waived it off as a result of the sweaty workout I did the other day where I was completely drenched in sweat. I figured it was just little painless infection that I will just keep clean and dry and it will go away, no biggie.

WRONG!

It only got worse and eventually became so painful every step I took made me squint and sitting down just wasn’t happening. Even after Going Mom made a calming epsom salt bath for me the day before, it was no match for the infection that was already at DEFCON 1 status.

By Tuesday night, after tossing and turning with no sleep, I finally caved at 3 am and had to find an urgent care or ER facility immediately. Luckily Sadly, there’s plenty of those all over (just like fast food chains….correlation?) and I only had to drive 5 miles. That, by the way, was the most awkward drive ever since I had my butt lifted off the seat the entire time.

From what I read on Dr. Google, I expected to go in, have a doctor make an incision to drain the pus/fluid, and I’d get back in time for my wife to go to work. Once again, I was wrong. I knew it right after having two people look at my ass and gasp as they said “Oh, that’s bad”. Thanks for the comfort, doctor and nurse. Bam, I was tagged.

 

One thing was for sure, they had to get the infection drained and under control quickly since staph (especially MRSA which is what we think it is) is a force to be reckoned with. After the nurse stuck me 5 times (not kidding) on my right arm to start an IV, she had to have someone else come and use my left arm instead. He got it after the second time.

Then I was told to sit and wait a few hours as the surgeon who was on call made it over to operate on my butt. That will never sound right………ever.

They gave me morphine which helped negate the pain a little, but I still couldn’t lay on my back without looking like a deformed squirrel trying to crack open an acorn. I passed time between watching the time and a WPT tournament in Montreal.

ER_Clock_WPT

I tried sleeping, “butt” that wasn’t happening. Note the time was almost 6:30 am then. It wasn’t until 7:40 until the surgeon finally made it in. I know the world doesn’t revolve around my ass, but I have a right to complain anyway, right?

The guy who showed up had long gray hair in a ponytail and was wearing a Harley-Davidson shirt. That made me grateful I didn’t have a motorcycle to ride home on; OUCH! He was actually very nice and upfront with me, which I appreciated.

All he did was numb the area and worked to drain the infection. Holy hell that was the worst pain ever, and that’s with another dose of morphine! There I was, flat on my stomach and gripping the bed rails as two guys worked on getting crap out of my ass. A new life low had just hit.

Ten painful minutes later I was putting my shorts on over my gauze-stuffed butt and waited for a friend to come pick me up. He drove me home and took Kelley back to my car and she picked up my prescriptions. 2 antibiotics and Tylenol with codeine. I hate pain killers, but after suffering through the day, I did take one last night. I’m not officially a hypocrite. Damn you, ass!

Kelley ended up staying home all day and her work was completely understanding, so that was nice. She helped and tried to get me to stay still, but it was bad enough that the doctor told me to back off of exercise for a few days and definitely NO running.

“So I can’t run 13.1 miles on Sunday, huh?” I asked.

“No.” was the only reply.

And there you have it, I’m typing this with gauze still in my crack (no, not the same from the hospital) and pain radiating there as well. Hopefully the swelling will be down soon and the culture they are running on the drained fluid shows that they gave me the right antibiotics to knock this crap out of my system.

Back in 2011, I had a bad case of MRSA while on vacation in Colorado, so I guess this is the bacteria flaring up in my body again. I’ll keep you updated on my road to a hopeful recovery. I know everyone’s concerned. 🙂

Just be glad I didn’t share any pictures of the thing! I told Kelley I’m still going to run 13.1 miles around our home once I’m better, so we’ll see how that pans out.

Have you ever dealt with staph and/or MRSA?

Did I gross you out at all or as a parent, are you used to gross things? Throwing poop, maybe?

WIAW #11: No-Bake Mini NuttZo Pumpkin Cake

Baking can be such a hassle. Especially when you have little ones running the kitchen. Crazy kids plus a hot stove/oven NEVER mix! So, feeling creative for Avery’s breakfast, I decided to make a delicious and healthy cake that I didn’t need to bake. Wham, and I just rhymed; score!

NuttZo No-bake cake

I grabbed one of my 24 cans of Organic Farmer’s Market Pumpkin (Thank you, Amazon!), some NuttZo Power Fuel, peanut flour, and unsweetened shredded coconut and got to work. It turned out to hardly be “work” since 5 minutes later, our NuttZo Coconut Pumpkin Pie was born.

Avery was tugging at my shorts and whining for the first bite, so after I took a few quick pics, I fed my ravenous daughter.

I thought maybe, just maybe, there’d be a little leftover for me to savor, but that hope died fast. Unlike a typical pie, I found it easier to just roll into balls to feed her. At least that way I had messy fingers I got to lick!

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If there was time, I’m sure chilling it would make for a cleaner finger food, but as Jack Bauer would say, “There’s no time!”. It does cut pretty good even at room temp though.

Wanna give it a go for yourself? Do it!

Mini No-Bake NuttZo Coconut Pie

by RC Liley

Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Keywords: raw appetizer breakfast dessert snack nuttzo

Ingredients (Serves 1)

  • 1/2 Cup Pumpkin Puree
  • 2 Tbsp NuttZo (or other nut butter) at room temp
  • 1/4 Cup Peanut flour (Can use coconut or almond flour or even protein powder instead)
  • 2 Tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 packet stevia or 10 drops liquid stevia
  • Pinch of sea salt

Instructions

Add all ingredients in a bowl and stir well to combine.

Form into a small cake, roll into balls, or just leave as is to eat with a spoon.

Enjoy!!

Powered by Recipage

 

On to the main part of the post now, my eats!

Thanks as always to the wonderful Jenn from Peas and Crayons, for creating this fun link-up for foodies everywhere! It was great then and continues to be an awesome linky now!

what I ate wednesday, WIAW

 

Breakfast – One of my many leftover cups of black coffee from Starbucks that I picked up on Mother’s Day.

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Lunch – Steamed veggies with eggs and raw broccoli on top. Then some Greek yogurt with purple sweet potato, NuttZo, and homemade banana bread. While watching Avery not take her nap!
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Dinner – Shredded chicken with black garlic and steamed broccoli and a little spicy kimchi mixed in as well.
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And don’t tell Avery, but I made another batch of the no-bake NuttZo pie for myself to have as a nighttime treat.
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Yeah, I’ll be making more of that for the both of us for sure! Have a great Hump Day!

Do you like no-bake recipes or prefer to always cook your meals/snacks?

Ever buy things you use a lot in bulk on Amazon or another site? It’s a must in our home!

Brilliant blog posts on HonestMum.com