Hey guys! I know it's been a good while since my last interesting post, haha. I have been doing weekly updates on how I am staying active weekly but I know that can be a bore for some of you so I'm back today with a tutorial but first a little background.

If you follow me on Instagram (@stormieariel) than you know I recently opened my own small shop on Insta (@shopstormieariel). Since Sophia was born, actually before she was born, I loved the way nylon headbands looked. They are so sweet and simple and chic, perfect for a little girl. BUT the price tag on most of them kept me from biting the bullet and even if they were a reasonable price, I couldn't pick just one. So I decided to teach myself how to make bows since I had fabric on hand that was left over from the fabric kites I made for Sophia's nursery plus I also had tons of ribbon on hand from my numerous other projects and from my schoolgirl days.

And I know there are mommas out there like me who are on a budget and need to know how to make simple bows to get them by until they can splurge so I decided to make a video tutorial of how I make one of the bows I sell in my shop. It is the simplest and easiest bow tutorial, so easy a caveman can do it (name that commercial). Also, please let me know how you like the video tutorial in the comments below. I would love the feedback as to which I should start including videos in all my tutorials or if step by step photos preferred or both!

To help me stay accountable, I decided to share my newly vowed healthy lifestyle by documenting it here on a weekly basis. I hope you decide to follow along so we can cheer each other on and be an inspiration for one another! You can also follow along on Instagram with #howstormiegothergrooveback

My husband and I have been determined to hatch our Pokemon Eggs on Pokemon Go, so we have been walking A LOT more than normal. I really think this mobile game has gotten a lot more people outdoors and moving and hope it stays that way! Hopefully more games will follow suit. I didn't do any strengthening exercises this week as it has been so hot and the humidity makes it feel like we went running even though we didn't. I do plan to add in strengthening stuff on rest days making it an active rest day because those are just as important as cardio.

To help me stay accountable, I decided to share my newly vowed healthy lifestyle by documenting it here on a weekly basis. I hope you decide to follow along so we can cheer each other on and be an inspiration for one another! You can also follow along on Instagram with #howstormiegothergrooveback

As I mentioned last week, I skipped a week of everything since I decided to binge watch Jane The Virgin. Bad I know, don't judge. This week I decided to get back out there and get moving. I thought it was gonna be hard to restart but it really wasn't but I think most of that has to do with Pokemon Go. I have lots of eggs to hatch and don't think I jumped on the bandwagon just because its "trending" right now. I have been a Pokemon fan since I was a kid between playing Pokemon Stadium on N64 and the Yellow Version, Silver Version, Crystal Version on my Gameboy Color. As an adult, I now own Pokemon Stadium once again and Silver Version for my Nintendo DS so when Pokemon Go came out, I had to try it and I'm loving it because I get to play on the go and it's motivating me to stay active. I just wish they would allow users to battle and trade like the original versions. Anywho, this is what I have been up to:

As you know, last year, I began taking daily photos of my outfits as I was learning how to mix and match the clothing items I already had, to create new outfits. I was also learning to step out my comfort zone by breaking some old fashion rules that I stuck by (check out that series here) but now those rules are out the window. As I was venturing into my new fashion style I was constantly sharing my outfits on Instagram (#stormiearielstyle). 

To help me stay accountable, I decided to share my newly vowed healthy lifestyle by documenting it here on a weekly basis. I hope you decide to follow along so we can cheer each other on and be an inspiration for one another! You can also follow along on Instagram with #howstormiegothergrooveback and to see what I'm eating just follow #stormiearielkitchen

Sunday - Swim Day

I played a few rounds of a seeking game with my nephew and I swam 4 laps during adult swim (I use to do 20 or more during adult swim but I'm still slowly accepting my body isn't where it use to be).

Monday - Rest Day

Tuesday - Exercises

While I was watching Pretty Little Liars, I decided to do a few sets of exercises during the commercial breaks. There were about 5 commericials so you can easily add in a lot of sets but due to a crying hungry baby, I ended up only completing like 4 sets I think.

With Fourth of July around the corner, I can't help but to search quick and easy craft ideas so I decided to share my favorites. Be inspired! And don't forget, you can always tweak crafts, like anything else, to fit with the supplies you already have on hand.

Two years ago I shared a bit of my fitness background story and my food and fitness routine. Back than my mindset was all about that number on the scale, I weighed myself everyday making sure that number didn't go up. Slowly I would skip some days and than eventually I would weigh myself every so often, I didn't do this on purpose it just happened with job changes and finishing my last semester in school.

Fast forward to the summer of 2015, I gained about 10 pounds back and a few weeks later we found out we were pregnant. I'm sure some of ya'll are all duh you gained weight, you were pregnant. Um no it's called eating junk food and having too much Dr. Pepper, I was only 6 weeks pregnant and you do not gain weight that quickly, you just don't. Obviously, I couldn't cut calories at this point but I could make healthier eating choices so I didn't blow up. I'd like to say I was perfectly healthy but we aren't perfect, if we were we would all have these amazing fit bodies but I did end up only gaining a total of 35 pounds during pregnancy and I am proud of that.

Back in January when we started our Bradley Method Birth Class I talked about doing a review once we finished our class but than decided to hold it off until after birth to give you a full review and if I thought it actually helped.

On Monday when I shared the latest of what's happening in Little Love's nursery, I mentioned spending the cash/check gifts to purchase her vintage French provincial dresser. And I thought I would share tips and tricks on what you should do with all those monetary gifts including gift cards.

Back in January I shared a small update of Little Love's nursery showcasing her crib and bedding and a few weeks ago, I shared a tutorial for the fabric kites hanging above Sophia's crib. I decided it was time for another update so today I am sharing all about the craigslist dresser I've talked about a few times and the pros and cons of our corner shelves.

I have had my Nikon Coolpix P530 for over a year but for the longest I always used it on the preset modes or auto mode. However, the last few months I have been reading tons of articles trying to teach myself how to shoot in manual mode. I have always enjoyed taking pictures even as a kid but now I'm actually loving the art of photography and when my sister asked me to take her family pictures (I was a little hesitant at first), I decided why not.