by christine victoria alexander

Thursday, August 27, 2020

ENOUGH WITH DIET CULTURE

I recently had a talk with a friend about this and wanted to share a little more about it here. Diet culture. What do I mean by that? I'm talking about rigid eating patterns, that, on the surface, are in the name of health, but in reality are about weight, shape or size. Conversations about weight, diets, good/bad foods, cutting carbs, detoxing, cleansing, calorie count, macros, etc. Exercise as a mode of weight loss, or as a punishment for eating. Praising body shape over body health.

You see, diet culture gets in our heads. It makes us feel shame and guilt. It destroys our relationship with food. It ruins our digestion, ruins our health, but worst of all, diet culture normalizes eating disorders. You may know someone who measures all their food and sticks to their diet 100% and works out every day and checks the menu before eating out to make sure they can find something that fits their macros. Guess what? That's someone obsessed with food, not health. That's diet culture. 

I struggled in my late teens/early twenties with my relationship to food. I loved working out, I loved reading health articles and fitness magazines. I was a gym rat. But, unfortunately, my obsession with health turned into an obsession with looking a certain way and eating a certain way. When I didn't meet my own strict standard of health I felt like I had failed. I went around and around in a vicious cycle of starting, failing, and restarting for years. All in the name of health. I really thought there was something wrong with me - that I had zero self control for not being able to stick to my rigid protocol of what a healthy body, diet and lifestyle looked like. 

I'll add here that my parents sensed something was wrong while I was still living at home and tried to help, but I just wasn't ready and didn't accept their help. I shared my struggle with my husband and spent the first few years of our marriage in a very dark and depressing place. I look back at pictures from then and hardly recognize myself. For someone obsessed with "health" I looked the furthest thing from it. 

It wasn't until I got pregnant with my daughter Olive that I realized I was ready. I didn't want to raise a daughter with this "sickness". I didn't want to try and hide it from her my whole life. I wanted her to have a healthy relationship with food. I wanted to be an example to her of what health and vitality looked like. I wanted her to view food and exercise through a completely different lens than I did. And I knew that was only possible if I healed myself first. 

I worked with an incredible therapist that dealt specifically in eating disorders and by the time Olive was born I had a completely new relationship with food. In May of the following year, on my 25th birthday, I shared with my parents and siblings the struggle I had faced and we celebrated together my freedom from the sick thinking that had weighed me down for years. 

The biggest lesson I took away from my wonderful therapist was this: Food is fuel. Food is energy. That's exactly how I'm teaching my children to view food. Food gives us the energy to swim and dance and play and be mommies and daddies. Food fuels us up for a hike, or a run, or a long day working in the garden. Food is medicine. Food helps keep us warm and healthy in the winter. Food keeps us cool and hydrated in the summer. 

I like to encourage my girls to be active everyday - I don't call it a workout, I don't tell them they have to workout so we can go eat lunch. I teach them how sweating helps our bodies. I teach them how resting helps our bodies. I teach them how my prenatal workouts keep my core strong to hold baby until baby comes out. We ride bikes and we go to the tennis court and we play frisbee in the backyard and none of that has to do with looking a certain way - it has to do with feeling a certain way: full of energy and full of life! I hope they always hold onto that mindset. 

Let's ditch diet culture and raise the next generation to understand that health is not a jeans size. Health is loving life and loving yourself enough to fuel your body with foods that make you feel vibrant and beautiful and strong every single day!

I would love to hear your thoughts or your personal journey! Comment or send me an email! xx

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Tuesday, August 25, 2020

THE GIRL'S BATH REVEAL

I'm doing a happy dance today because we (finally) finished the Girl's Bath project we started months ago! I'm so happy with how it turned out! We weren't doing a big gut or anything, just trying to brighten things up a little to make it prettier and I think that's just what we accomplished! 

My goal for this room was to make it light, airy and feminine. (Read more about my inspiration here) The first thing I did was paint the previously gray walls a light, creamy off-white. It made things so much brighter! (Read about the paint I chose here) I painted the vanity the same shade as the walls and cleaned up the knobs with steel wool. 

We swapped the dated vanity light, towel bar, and faucet for pretty, polished nickel fixtures. When we went to hang the mirror it didn't fit between the wall and the light fixture - the glass globes were too big. The mirror was the perfect size for our space so I ordered a new light fixture and, honestly, I love this one more than the first one I picked! 

Instead of art over the toilet I decided to do a shelf, and then hang art on the wall to the side of the toilet where you can see it from the hall as you walk by. I think a space feels most complete when you can stand anywhere in the room and find a pretty view. 



I find towel bars a real pain, especially when you have more than one or two towels to hang! I went with towel hooks in here and I think they are much more practical. They're so friendly and approachable, don't you think? I upgraded our ratty, 7-year old towels with these plush organic ones in a warm oatmeal color. Can't say enough good things about them - I'm buying more for our master bathroom!

We hung a wall mounted shower rod above the tile which gave this whole shower nook a major lift. Such a simple upgrade but it made a huge difference. 


My sister told me the other day that I had expensive taste and I said, "What?! No. I don't need the best of the best for everything. I'm practical!" But maybe she's right, to some extent. I could have bought everything for this bathroom at Target or Home Goods, but I didn't. I love a good deal as much as anyone, but I really enjoy finding pieces that are unique, well made, that will last me years and years. Those kinds of pieces usually do cost more and I'm okay with that. For me, this is a form of art. I love making things look beautiful and I'm not necessarily concerned with doing that the cheapest way possible. I save a little where I want and splurge a little where I want. I've linked most of the pieces I used for this project, but if you are trying to decorate on a budget then of course you can find similar items at Target, Home Goods and World Market! 

A couple things we will circle back around and do in here at a later date include replacing the tub, retiling the shower and upgrading the tub fixtures. For now, this is a huge, huge improvement! 

That's a wrap on the Girl's Bath! On to our next project! xx

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Wednesday, August 12, 2020

BABY & ME: 15 WEEKS

A couple of weeks ago I said goodbye to my first trimester. I am not sad to see it go. My energy is coming back, my nausea is manageable, and I'm no longer sleeping with my eyes open while I take care of the girls. 😴 Things are looking up! 

A little update on baby and me...

BABY: Baby is the size of an orange this week! I haven't felt any kicks yet, but I didn't with the other girls until closer to 20 weeks. My placenta has been anterior with all my babies which means it's on the front of my belly so I don't feel all the wiggles quite as early. Baby had his/her first checkup and is measuring right on track for our guess date at the end of January! Both my ultrasound technician and midwife said the baby is not shy and commented on how easy it was for them to find the heartbeat because baby wasn't moving out of the way or hiding. At our ultrasound baby had his/her feet up, legs crossed, just relaxing and looking so chill. I feel like we are already getting a little glimpse of a personality and it makes my heart flutter. I am so excited to meet this little baby! 

We go in about 3 weeks to find out the gender. I CANNOT WAIT! I was feeling boy at the ultrasound but then my midwife guessed girl based on the heartbeat so now I'm thinking girl?! Eek I just can't wait to know and start envisioning our life with this little one! 

ME: The bump is showing sooner this time around! I've heard people say that but didn't really feel it with my first 3. I guess 4th time's the charm for me. It shows up more or less depending on what I wear and what time of day it is. I haven't pulled out my maternity bin yet (it's all jeans and tights which sound horrible in this heat) but I've started shopping for a few pieces to get me through the rest of the summer. I want to put together a little fall/winter maternity capsule next month! 

I'm in an awkward squishy chubby phase of bump and it's not really my favorite. That said, this squishy chubby bump is a daily reminder to the girls that we have a baby on the way. They see me and say, "Mommy, I am just so excited for our baby to come out!" and "Mommy, I just can't wait to meet our baby!" and I love that so much

I haven't been craving anything consistently. Eating lots of wraps, salads, sandwiches, muesli, and heaps of fruit. 

My creativity always kicks up a notch when I'm pregnant. I have lots of hobbies but something usually just pops out at me and I'll get caught up in it until the baby comes. With Olive I painted for a couple hours every day. With Rosie I got into coloring books, but I don't remember much after that because we moved and unpacking and moving in sort of took up most of my time. With Madeline I got into sewing and then tried my hand at making clay rainbows. With this baby being my first winter baby I've gotten completely caught up in knitting again (I haven't knit in years)! 👵 I'll share some of my projects later!

It's 9:30 and I'm exhausted! Headed to bed! Thanks for all the love you have shown me and this baby already! Big hugs! xx



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Tuesday, August 11, 2020

CURRENTLY CRAVING: BABIES & NEUTRALS

If you ever want to take a peek into a person's current interests, style, cravings, etc just take a scroll through their Pinterest feed. It's usually pretty easy to see what they're loving lately! I love Pinterest and find so much inspiration there for design, style, and photography.

I have a bunch of boards I pin to regularly with things I'm loving and then I have a bunch of hidden boards I pin to for each project I'm working on in our home. When I want to freshen up a space I pin ideas that inspire me and then I'll start pinning items I see like artwork or a bedspread or a mirror that I might actually buy or look similar to something I have already. It really helps me to see everything in one place - like an online mood board!  

Pinning to boards is also a great way to find your style. I've been pinning home inspiration for years and recently decided that I wanted my home to be a fresh, coastal-inspired experience filled with blue and white. I started pinning coastal interiors filled with seagrass, rattan, and every shade of blue. Something wasn't working - things I loved didn't seem to fit into my new design plans. I started to feel like my design sketches were looking less and less like "me". So I went back to pins before my "blue period" and I realized they all had something in common: NEUTRALS. Warm neutrals. Sunlight shining in on creamy paint. Golds and yellows and brass. Tan and oatmeal and cream and camel. Textures. Wood and rattan and cane and linen. I still love a coastal palette but I think I'll save that for a home that is actually on or near the water.

I think decor looks the most effortless and natural when it's a continuation of it's surroundings. There is a reason coastal homes are usually decorated in whites and blues. They are a continuation of the ocean, the sand and the sky. Mountain cabins are usually filled with lots of wood and cozy textures that make you want to curl up and read a book like you're tucked away in a treehouse outside. Decor and color palette also set the tone for a home. Vibrant colors create energy and excitement, light colors create calmness and relaxation. I love color but get bored easily and like to change things up so using bold color is easier in my wardrobe than my living room! And because life with littles is already exciting enough I'm craving a calming neutral environment that I can change up with artwork, prints, wallpaper, etc when I want a fresh look.

Here is what I've been inspired by lately, thanks to Pinterest! In between neutrals in my closet and home I'm definitely getting excited about this little baby and can't wait to dress him/her in all the cozy knits!












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