Third babies keep you on your toes

And here I was thinking another baby would be fun.... Ha ha. He has reflux and essentially throws up all day long. He also strains like he's giving birth when he has a bowel movement. He manages to go several times a day, but it's just a major ordeal when he goes and sometimes requires me to "assist" with a baby thermometer. Poor guy. Anyway, the last few days Ed and I were about to go crazy. He's been what I consider "colicky" (hurting baby) for a week now. Ed went online and we discovered The Elimination Diet on Dr. Sears site. It's a diet for breastfeeding moms to try if they have colicky babies that may have food sensitivities. I figured I'd give it a try.

So here's what I can eat :

Turkey
Lamb
Sweet Potatoes
Baked Potatoes
Yellow and green squash
Pears
Pear juice
Brown Rice
Millet
Rice beverages

No seasoning other than salt and pepper.

Yeah, that's it! So i've been eating this way for two days and Shepherd has responded well to it. Less fussiness and he slept again last night (2 hour stretches). He only did that once on Christmas Eve and then got worse and worse thereafter. I tell ya, nothing like sleep deprivation and desperation to make you stick to a food plan! LOL

So I'm thinking I'll start losing some weight since I can't have any of the processed goodness that I tend to gravitate to. I'm going to slowly add back more variety. I'm going to stay away from dairy for a while though as I suspect that's the big culprit.

And maybe, just maybe, I'll get enough rest to begin exercise again.

Oh how I love thee YMCA....

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas!

Before


After..

Merry Christmas!!

In survival mode...

So my little guy has reflux.  Poor buddy is spitting up and screaming every feeding.  Thankfully we got some medicine for him from the doctor that is supposed to minimize the pain he has with the reflux.  Amelia had reflux too, but no pain at all.  Not Shepherd.  He's a grunter, screecher, crier.  And he doesn't sleep more than one hour at night.  We're hoping the Zantac helps him. 

Needless to say, I'm exhausted.  And despite all my "no excuses" mentality, it's dang hard to think about eating healthy food when you're exhausted.  You just eat what is placed in front of you or you order out.  I made all these individual salads and put them in the frig.  They've sat there for 3 days.  :(  Just been totally out of it.  In fact, I feel like the last three days has been one long day.  

I feel like once I can get some sleep, I can function properly.  If Shepherd can extend his sleep just a little bit at night, I'll feel like a new woman.  At that point I'll add back exercise.  But right now I feel like my body is conserving energy for breastfeeding and taking care of my babies.  There's that fine line between going on a walk to invigorate you and give you energy and just doing it and feeling even more exhausted.  I'm feeling the latter.  

This too shall pass.

I'm setting small eating goals for the next week.  

1.  Drink lots of water.

2.  Don't over do it on sugar.

3.  Eat fruit.

Okay, my little man is sleeping, so I need to sleep too.  

Initial postpartum weightloss is great for immediate gratification!

So, I got on the scale (first time in months) when I got home from the hospital.  197.  Yowza!  No biggie, I thought.  That was Sunday.

Tuesday I got on the scale.  190.  Cool.

Thursday I got on the scale (I wasn't obsessing so much as I was just plain curious).  187.

Today I got on the scale: 183.  

Sweet!  At this rate I'll be back in my size 4's by New Years!  (Ha ha)

I pulled out my WW's book today.  Starting to get in the frame of mind to lose this pregnancy weight.  Looks like I'll be eating 34 pts (including nursing pts) per day.  Cool.  I can do this.  

I went on a walk today with my sister.  Felt so good.  Nothing crazy, just a slow walk around my neighborhood with Shepherd in the stroller.  I had been having cabin fever and needed to get out!  The walk was nice and I definitely felt better and  had more energy afterwards.  Shepherd was up ALL NIGHT last night.  Gassy and couldn't really settle.  So I needed some energy.   Luckily my mom and sis are in town taking care of me.  I slept until 1pm and woke up feeling like I had a hang over.  I'm hoping Shepherd sleeps better tonight.  He's definitely got his days and nights mixed up.  I don't care if I have to wake to feed him every 2 hours, it would just be nice if he actually slept in between feedings.  The only time he settles is if he's hooked to my boob all night.  But then I get paranoid I'm going to smother him in my sleep, so then I don't sleep well.  

Oh well, this too shall pass.  

Other than sleep deprivation, I'm loving every minute of Shepherd's newbornness.  He's sweet and smells good and makes me smile.  

How you burn calories while sitting on your butt

Breastfeeding.....a postpartum girl's best friend.

We're settling in quite nice here.  I feel great.  Better than any of my other births.  I did have a 2nd degree tear, but surprisingly I feel no pain from it at all.  I do have some lingering pubic bone soreness, but that was before the birth.  All in all I'm a firm believer that recovering from an unmedicated childbirth is much, much easier.  

Breastfeeding is going smoothly.  I'm enjoying it very much.  It's pretty  much all I do.  This boy is ALL about nursing .  Seriously, like every 30 mins.  My milk came in without much fanfare because this man child keeps emptying them so thoroughly.  I kept waiting for engorgement and it never really came.  We had a pediatrician appt yesterday and he's already back up to his birth weight.  

Fischer and Amelia are adjusting well.  We were mainly worried about Amelia.  She has been extremely emotional and having more than a fair share of tantrums.  We're working on having grace for her, while still disciplining.  She had a break through today and asked to hold Shepherd.  I got a pic.  She was very proud she held him all by herself.  She's since helped me change a few diapers. 

So far so good on the three kids "thing."  (Me and my whole FOUR DAYS of experience as a mom of three).  I feel blessed and very happy.  I'm living in the moment and trying to remember to take care of myself.  I'm soaking up every moment of Shepherd's teeny tininess.  Even in the sleep deprived moments in the middle of the night I just stare at him.  Unending patience that somehow reveals itself despite myself.  I read in a book that a mom of multiple kids should take at least 6 weeks "off" before resuming normal stuff.  I felt like that was ridiculous, but the theory is the whole "happy mom makes happy kids."  I'm a believer.  

Well, I've got a baby who wants to nurse!  

Birth Story

Friday morning we woke up and headed to the hospital. I had been having start/stop labor all week and was becoming exhausted. I never planned on intervening at all to begin labor, but my midwife and I decided that breaking my waters would be all I needed to push my body into active labor. No pitocin or any other induction meds necessary. I was nervous about labor, but was very ready. I felt like my body was just ready to roll. We arrive and find out that both waterbirth rooms were taken by other moms. I panicked a little because that was one of my fears. Luckily the midwife said she'd wait a while to break my waters and by the time I'd need it- one of the other moms will have given birth.

I was pleased to find out I was 3-4cm upon arrival. That was encouraging because I knew my contractions had been doing something. It wasn't until noon that the midwife broke my waters. But when she did- Niagra Falls. The amount of fluid! It was such a nice release. Surprisingly nothing much happened after that. I expected the contractions to hit intensely like they had in my last labor when my water broke. Instead Ed, Teresa (my wonderful doula) and I just sat around and chatted. We periodically inquired about the woman in the tub room to gage when I'd go in. We learned around 3pm that she'd given birth and that the room would be available shortly.

That was when I started feeling consistent contractions. Nothing intense, just a pattern and caught my attention. Just before 4pm I noticed a distinct change and contractions became more intense. I was having to close my eyes and breath through them. Up to that point I just enjoyed listening to Ed and Teresa talk while I had one. Nice distraction. But now I was "working." Up to this point I wouldn't even say they hurt-just lots of pressure. It was after one particularly strong one that I said : "I need to get in the tub." Just then the nurse came in and said they were filling it now. I had another couple powerful ones and then Ed helped me shuffle down the hall to our waterbirth room.  His job was make sure my gown didn't flap open and reveal my rump while getting to our room.  LOL

I got straight into the tub and knew I had hit transition. The contractions took over and I could only surrender to them. I just floated on my side and let the water hold me while the contraction peaked. I had a handful like that and then felt the need to get on my knees with my hands draped over the tub. They became stronger and stronger. I started doubting myself and really needed Teresa to look at me and vocalize with me. Ed kept putting icy cold washcloths on my neck and head. That was so nice. Then during the peak of one of these contractions I felt "pushy." Then the next one there was no mistake: I was pushing! I could feel Shepherd move down into the birth canal. I told Tersea he was coming. She told me to reach down and feel if he was there. I did and could feel his head just inside. "I feel him!" They got Margaret (my midwife) and I started to really bear down. He moved down quickly and the next two pushes I felt the all famous "ring of fire." I didn't realize I was crowning and just kept thinking: why is it stinging? Margaret was like: "His head is half way out." Oh! By then I was so motivated to get him out I just pushed with all my might. His head was born. Then I pushed again and felt his shoulders, body and legs be born. I would have never thought that was a cool feeling, but it really was. I turned around and Margaret brought him up out of the water and into my arms. It was the most amazing feeling in the world.

Shepherd Avery Gordon was born at 5:24pm (After only an hour and a half of noticeable labor). He weighed 8 lb, 6oz. 19 inches long (shorty).

Right after he came out....

Snuggling into our postpartum room..

So how does Dec 5th sound?

So after a 4 days of start/stop labor, my midwife and I decided tomorrow will be the day if Shepherd doesn't make his arrival sooner. I have an olympic size pool of amniotic fluid in my uterus. Big surprise huh? No, not twins....WATER! Anyway, both my midwives agreed that sometimes with that amount of fluid your body can be on the cusp of labor and just can't quite get there. Which sort of explains this past week for me. And I'd be all for waiting for it to get there except I'm going on no sleep with two kids and a husband that is trying to be Mr Mom and business owner.

The good news is that I'm already dilated to 2cm. I've never dilated before labor. Always high, tight, firm, thick, etc. So that was a positive sign for me that I'm not, in fact, crazy and I am experiencing some contractions.

So..the plan is to go to the hospital tomorrow morning and my midwife will break my waters. She's confident that no other meds (pitocin) will be needed and my body will kick into gear. Then, as soon as I'm ready, I'll get in the tub and have my waterbirth!

Yesterday after thinking about this option I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. I prayed about it and then felt peace. I felt like my body would tell me what to do. Then at 3am this morning contractions hit every 4 mins. They puttered out 7am. I was able to sleep two hours and then woke up again feeling cramping. This was my sign that I cannot do this over and over again for another two weeks. So I made my decision that Dec 5th it is unless Shepherd decides to come sooner.

Anyhow, we'll see what happens today and tonight, but I feel good about my decision to break the waters tomorrow and let labor come. I'm excited and nervous. I can't wait to meet my son. To hold him, to nurse him, to see him. I'm planning an unmedicated waterbirth, so I'm preparing for the work of labor. So I get nervous every so often, but for the most part I feel peace and I'm ready.

I'll post pics and my birth story as soon as I can!

How does December 5th sound for a birthday?

So after a 4 days of start/stop labor, my midwife and I decided tomorrow will be the day if Shepherd doesn't make his arrival sooner.  I have an olympic size pool of amniotic fluid in my uterus.  Big surprise huh?  No, not twins....WATER!  Anyway, both my midwives agreed that sometimes with that amount of fluid your body can be on the cusp of  labor and just can't quite get there.  Which sort of explains this past week for me.  And I'd be all for waiting for it to get there except I'm going on no sleep with two kids and a husband that is trying to be Mr Mom and business owner.  

 The good news is that I'm already dilated to 2cm.  I've never dilated before labor.  Always high, tight, firm, thick, etc.  So that was a positive sign for me that I'm not, in fact, crazy and I am experiencing some contractions.  

So..the plan is to go to the hospital tomorrow morning and my midwife will break my waters.  She's confident that no other meds (pitocin) will be needed and my body will kick into gear.  Then, as soon as I'm ready, I'll get in the tub and have my waterbirth!

Yesterday after thinking about this option I wasn't sure what I wanted to do.  I prayed about it and then felt peace.  I felt like my body would tell me what to do.  Then at 3am this morning contractions hit every 4 mins.  They puttered out 7am.  I was able to sleep two hours and then woke up again feeling cramping.  This was my sign that I cannot do this over and over again for another two weeks.  So I made my decision that Dec 5th it is unless Shepherd decides to come sooner.

Anyhow, we'll see what happens today and tonight, but I feel good about my decision to break the waters tomorrow and let labor come.  I'm excited and nervous.  I can't wait to meet my son. To hold him, to nurse him, to see him.   I'm planning an unmedicated waterbirth, so I'm preparing  for the work of labor.  So I get nervous every so often, but for the most part I feel peace and I'm ready.  

I'll post pics and my birth story as soon as I can!  

I have some pretty amazing friends...

Feeling better every day.  Pubic bone is less tender and I can walk (or wobble) fine.  I walked down the stairs yesterday (without telling Ed) and got into trouble.  As I should have because once I got back up I was aching.  I just wanted to see my Christmas Tree I put up Friday that I couldn't enjoy.  So now I'm back in my bedroom jail and being a good girl and resting.  If I don't make myself rest, I'll regret it in labor.  So taking it easy is going to be my only option for now.  Which for those of you who know me- is the hardest thing in the world right now.  How am I supposed to nest in bed for Pete's sake?  

My friends I have to say, have been amazing.  Ed has been Mr Mom all weekend, but now he needs to work and I've had some anxiety about getting back into the swing of things so he can work.  I'm anticipating labor soon and I want Ed to feel settled with work.  Today alone two of my friends called to see if they could bring me something from the store.  One is bring us dinner tonight.  My other friend is taking the kids after school.  And ANOTHER friend is taking Amelia tomorrow while Fischer is at school.  And then two other friends brought me treats yesterday.  I always feel weird about letting people help me.  I mean, I'm not a martyr or anything, I definitely need help, but it takes me a moment to feel okay about it.   Plus I hate to feel like I'm making a big deal out of something.  Except to Ed- to him I totally cry and whine about it.  LOL

Anyway, it's just nice when you're in need of something and someone takes the time to help you.  Simple concept, but goes a long way.  I'm lucky enough to have friends that don't really ask- but just do it.  They know me well. 

Loading up on fruit today.   My lack of movement has caused some...ahem..."stalling' in the ol' digestive tract.  Good times...  My goal today is water and fruit!

Feeling better...

It's amazing what a day of complete bed rest will do for you.  I feel much better.  I'm able to get up off the bed by myself and walk to the bathroom.  It still hurts and feels like I've been riding a horse for a week straight,  but I can do it.  Tylenol is my new best friend.  

My husband has been amazing.  If you can take a 9 month pregnant woman "potty" in the middle of the night, you pretty much get a gold medal.  He's also been bringing me my meals and whatever else I've needed (coughOREOScough).  Last night he ordered chinese food for me and surprised me with it.  We've been eating leftovers all week it, so I was thrilled to see take out.  

I've been spending a lot of time with Food Network.  I'm convinced I gained 5 lbs just from watching Paula Dean ya'll.  She made this delightful Cajun Fried Okra with chili sauce.  I want it.  And I want it now. 

I have to admit I've really just thrown in the towel food wise in the last few weeks.   My friend Sheila said by the end of pregnancy you get no comfort whatsoever so you just end up eating comfort food.  :)  That's me.  I'm not necessarily eating all bad food, just bigger portions.  I'm allowing more indulgences here and there.  And of course Thanksgiving doesn't help.   I've been trying to think forward and think about my plan for post baby weight.  I've decided to begin my official "lose the weight" journey come Jan 1st.  2009 will be the year I lose it again and I'm pretty excited about it all.  I'm equally excited to get back to my classes at the YMCA.  I've told Ed that as soon as baby gets a little predictable with feedings, I'm planning on going to the 6am Heat classes again first.  Then once Shepherd is 3 months old or so I'll start bringing him to the Y.  I'm also planning on beginning a walking regime that will evolve into a running routine.  I want develop a fitness routine as soon as possible (within reason of course).  I know it's all about habit.  If you say you'll never have time, then you wont.  But if you work it in just like you do food, it will become second nature.  I'm also very aware of my tendency towards post partum depression.  Which is another reason I want to start exercising ASAP.  Our bodies need that surge of endorphins in the midst of all the hormonal shifting.  

I remember before I lost the weight after Amelia I decided to really visualize myself doing it.  I could see myself fit and in control of my eating habits.  And staying focused on that made a big difference in me staying OP.  I've been visualizing myself again.  Fit.  Healthy.  I'm going to have three kids now, so I've got to stay fit to keep up.  God I miss that Energizer Bunny energy that exercise gives you...  I'm afraid I won't be able to do much more until after baby.  I need to give my pubic bone a break.  

Okay, I'm off to watch History Channel and listen to narrators with english accents and learn things.  It makes me feel less vegetative and kinda smart like. 

Well, I've done it again

I've managed to injure myself.  This time it's my pubic bone.  I was bathing the kids last night and was in a squat next to the bath tub to wash them up.  When I went to stand up I slipped into an involuntary split.  Then, when trying to recover and catch myself I slipped again into ANOTHER split.  I tell you, I've never felt pain like that.  It felt like I cracked the front of my pubic bone.  Thankfully Ed ran in and picked me up.  I couldn't move for the first 10 mins.  And now this morning I can't walk, get up, sit down, or roll over.  I'm okay if I'm laying on my side, but I can't move or else it hurts.  Sweet.  

Talked to my midwife this morning.  She said she's pretty sure I pulled apart my pubic bone.  She ordered 3 days of immobility in the bed and some extra strength tylenol.  That and binding my hips to help relieve pressure.  Thankfully I already have a binder that I got from my chiropractor to hold adjustments, so that's good.  

I'm just relieved that I have an opportunity to heal before labor.  I cannot imagine trying to labor like this.  I mean, I stood up this morning and literally could not put one foot in front of the other.   

Hey, on the bright side- maybe I did myself a favor by creating more room for the fatty to slip through!  *nervous laughter*

How low can you go?

38 weeks.....   Wow.  In many ways this pregnancy seemed long, but now it feels like it flew right by.  I'm over it, but I'm definitely not have as antsy as I was with my other two at this point.  And I have to say, my body is in much better shape this time around.  I feel stronger even though I have a lot of back pain.  More healthy.

Saw one of my  midwives today, Kay.  I told myself this pregnancy I would not to cervical checks until I was in labor or went WAY over due (42 weeks).  So as tempting as it was to have a cervical check, I chose not to ask.  I've been having so much prelabor lately that it does make me curious, but I know better than to assume I'm dilated.  Kay did, however, feel my tummy and declared: "His head is gone!"  LOL  He's way down in my pelvis now.  Yeah, no kidding!??  Maybe that's why I feel like my pelvis is broken lately.  So tender and just not fun getting in and out of bed in the middle of the night.  Anyway, all great news.  Thankful for that.  I've never had a baby drop into my pelvis before labor, so I'm all about it!

Went on a walk with Penny yesterday evening.  I tried to step it up a notch from letting the dog pull me along to actually participating in the walk and even categorizing it as a "brisk" walk. Felt good.  Brisk, but short.  Gets some oxygen to my brain and just gives me a little booste.  

Today Ed and I took the kids tot he mall and walked around.  We were bored and wanted to get out and do something, but avoid the cold.  We didn't realize Santa would be there, so that was a fun surprise.  The kids just hung out and talked with him.  No one else was in line.  Then we just walked around.  Eventually we passed a nail salon and Amelia and I got pedicures.  Her very first time even seeing a place that was only for nails!  She was so thrilled and perfectly behaved.  Like she'd done it a million times.  They painted her toes and nails.  She kept perfectly still and waited for them to dry.  She was so happy.  Felt like a "woman."  I was so tickled watching her.  We've got to make a habit of that.  Her and I going to get mani/pedi's.  My little baby will no longer be the baby anymore.  But she will be the only girl and I plan to get away for a girl's day out with her often.  

Now I'm off for a nap.  I covet naps.  I love them soo, sooo much.  Ed is off of work and Amelia is asleep.  I'm going to lay down and get some rest after all that mall walking.  

Feeling the peace

I'm still not enjoying these last days of pregnancy, but I have to say this peace I've had the last few days has stuck around.  I'm in no hurry.  I'm taking these last days to just wonder about my child- who he is, what he looks like, what kind of personality he'll have.  Ya know, even you hard asses can get sentimental at the end.  You just want to see your baby's face.  

I had another bout of practice labor last night.  My midwife said he's down low again.  I definitely felt the contractions in my uterus and in my hips this time.  First hour they were 4 mins part, lasting 45 sec or so.  2nd hour they were stronger,  3 mins apart and lasting 1 minute.  I was breathing through them and just taking the opportunity to surrender to them.  Practicing all my pain coping techniques.  And despite that they kept me up until 2am, I was grateful I got to practice a little.  Makes me less anxious about the real thing.  Yes, and so of course they puttered out after I closed my eyes and tried to go to sleep.  This is just how my body likes to do things.  A couple run throughs, some rough drafts, fine tuning the details and THEN we'll be ready to go!  

Today was not a good eating day.  I guess when you're tired and you want energy, you try to convince yourself that sugar will help.  The kids had a Thanksgiving Feast at school and there were lots of holiday yummies.  I indulged.  And now I feel processed and sugared out.  Blech.  

I have my Birthing Again class tonight with just the women.  I'm looking forward to that time.  We've all been there, done that- so it should lead to some interesting discussions.  

My father and step mom are taking my kids tomorrow for the night.  I cannot tell you how nice that will be!  I'm looking forward to waking up slowly Sunday morning.  No sippy cups of milk to be prepared, making everyone's breakfast before I even decided what I'm having, no diaper  changes, clothes dressing, hair brushing.....  Ahhhhhhh......

37 weeks

I'm here.   I'm rounding 3rd base, headed for home.  

I've had a weird peace settle over me in the last day or two.  Baby can come when he wants to.  I can get through 3-4 measly little weeks.  Hell, if I can train for a marathon, I can be 9 months pregnant for a while.  

Headed to the midwife.  At which  point I'll show up at my appt time and then wait 2 hours.  Happens every time.  I'm looking at it like "Study Hall."  I bring some books, maybe some knitting and get down to it.  

Went on a walk last night.  Brrrrrrr...it's cold here in the ATL.  Plan to do some walking again today.  

Body is behaving today

Feeling good today.  Much better than yesterday.  Kids dragged me out of bed at 7:30am and we all ate some breakfast and got dressed.  Carpool pick up was at 9am and then I headed out to get some random things done.  Post office, then pharmacy, then vacuum out van and go through the wash.  I'm a stickler about my car being clean.  I hate clutter and trash that can accumulate so easily when you have kids in  and out of your car all week.  It's therapeutic to get rid of the junk.  I  gave a thorough wiping down with non other than baby wipes (it's sort of scary how good baby wipes are at cleaning up stains) and Presto!  My car is like new.  

Of course I got back home and crashed.  Our neighbor is a genius on the smoker and makes killer smoked meat.  He smoked some yesterday and had some leftover offered it to us.  So for lunch I had a beef brisket sandwich and then took a 2 hour nap until the kids got back home from school.  I always say I'm going to nap while they're gone so that I'm rested when they get home- but then I end up trying to use the time to get stuff done.  I'm glad I chose a nap.  

I plan to get out for a walk this afternoon with the kids.  Then we'll stop at the neighborhood park and play for a while.  

Here's my tracker for today:

Breakfast:

Stoneyfield Farms Lowfat strawberry yogurt with grapnuts and almonds

Red Raspberry Leaf tea

Snack:

Non fat mocha, add protein

Lunch:

Beef brisket sandwich on wheat

Snack

"Ants on a Log" with Fischer (and carrots)

Dinner:

Using up leftovers: mixture of tacos, whole wheat cous cous and Minestrone soup.  LOL  Buffet style!  I'll serve a spinach salad to get the greens in. 

Snack:

Probably some nonfat chocolate frozen yogurt with almonds

The home stretch...

Waiting for a baby is like being on survivor during one of those immunity challenges where you have to hold up a board with a glass of water or something for an undisclosed amount of time without spilling it until you're the last one standing.  At this point my arms are shaking and I'm losing my balance.  

There are 11 (yes, ELEVEN) women due between now and January at my church.  We see each other occasionally, waddling to the bathroom or after our other kids.  We give that knowing smile like: "Yeah, I feel like shit too.  Isn't this magical and amazing?"  I firmly believe that you have to get so fed up and uncomfortable or be in down right pain at the end of pregnancy so that you're willing to go through labor in order to not be pregnant anymore.  I'm there.  And I'll only be 37 weeks in 2 days.  Sweet.  Oh, I'm going to get in trouble with my doula.  She reads this!  Teresa, I promise I'm in for the long haul!  I have no tricks up my sleeve!

 I'm an impatient person.  Add pain into that and I become a wimpy, weepy, irritable ball of mush.  I remind my clients all the time: "You know the average white woman goes 11 days beyond her due date.  You need to focus on your 'due season,' not the date.  It makes it much easier when the due date comes and goes."  And here I am thinking:  Dec 10th?  Are you sure you didn't get the one and zero mixed up and it's really Dec 1st? And by Dec 1st, I really mean November.  Really?  Have you seen me?  I'm like a science project gone bad.  The size of my stomach is grossly disproportional to my body.  My back going to literally break any second.....  People are staring at me in public.  They are scared.  Especially children.  

Okay, so maybe that's not true.  I went on a walk a couple days ago and this cop was directing traffic and called out across the street: "Have you tried castor oil?"  All I could say was: "No, I'm not a fan of anal leakage.  But thanks!"  

Serenity now.

I guess I'm not very 'inspirational' right now as far as diet and exercise.  I'm thinking I'll be bitching and moaning for the next weeks to come.  I am, however, maintaining my walks.  I've walked 3 days in a row and felt good during them.  They do give me energy and that's worth every step these days.  

A client of mine gave me her Hypnobirthing cds a while back.  I'm not a huge Hypnobirthing fan, but I like to listen to them at night before bed to help me relax and remember my body knows exactly what its doing.  I know God created my body to do this very thing.  I'm not faulty.  Just impatient.  

Long day

Though I think "long days" are pretty much going to be the norm for a while.  I had my prenatal with my midwife.  Baby is posterior, which I knew.  He's all over the place.  He's also come back out of my pelvis.  It probably doesn't help that I have an olympic size pool of amniotic fluid in there.   Anyway, just going to keep walking  and keep up my Optimal Fetal Positioning and ride it out.  

I've been doing well on my reduction of processed foods.  I'm doing the same for the kids.  Fischer is issues focusing and the fresher the food I can get into him, the better.  I'm lucky because my kids are good eaters.  Not picky.  They willingly eat and like vegetables and fruits.  This is good.

Here's today's tracker:

Breakfast:

Whole grain waffle with almond butter and syrup

Skim milk

Banana

Snack:

TJ's freeze dried white peaches

Apple

Lunch:

Chicken (rotisseri) sandwich on whole grain bread with mayo

Flaxseed corn chips

Carrtos and Cucumbers

Snack:

Pear

Hot chocolate made with skim, cocoa, and a little bit of sugar

Dinner:

Whole wheat cous cous with almonds and golden raisins

Roasted veggies with olive oil (carrots, onions, grape tomatoes, radishes, broccoli)

Sauteed Portobella mushrooms

Sliced pears

Dessert: (big one, Ed was sweet to go get me a craving I've had for a week now)

Chick-fil-A's Peppermint Chocolate Chip milkshake

36 weeks

Again, I think it would be hilarious to just take the pup on a walk like this.  For shear shock value. 

A little pampering never hurt a pregnant lady...

Well, once again, woken up around 3:30am with very crampy contractions. One nearly had me frozen and I couldn't move until it was over. Being on your side is no fun during contractions. Anyway, I knew it was false labor. Didn't put much weight in it. Just got up, peed (as per usual) and drank some water. Thankfully they went away much faster than last weekend. My kids had mercy on me and actually slept until 8am. So I felt pretty good. Got the kids off to school and headed to my chiropractic appt. He did his thing and I walked out feeling good. I told him if he wanted to do some "magic" that would put me in labor next week- he needs to be thinking about it. :) He laughed, but then said he had a few things up his sleeve of tricks. LOL

I then headed to my favorite nail place to use my birthday gift certificate for a mani/pedi. God it was good! THose ladies took forever just rubbing and scrubbing and I just melted. They even massaged my back while my toe nails dried! It's like a little piece of heaven opened up and poured down on me. I will have to go back again before this bambino makes his appearance.

I thought about a walk, but then decided against it since my nails were so purdy and I didn't want to put my tennis shoes back on. Priorities people.

Tomorrow I have a prenatal appt. I'm taking my daughter which always makes it interesting. She usually entertains the waiting room and then when we go back- the midwife lets her measure my belly. She feels very accomplished after leaving my prenatals.

I'm shooting for some exercise tomorrow. Whether it's outside or inside on the treadmill. Probably just a a mile or 1.5. My lower back and hips and butt is just plain shot!

Busy weekend. Lots of stuff going on. The holidays are fast approaching and time is flying. This is a good thing. Saturday night I had the pleasure of being woken up by painful contractions. Coming on every 5 mins and increasing in intensity. I spent 4 hours trying to get back to sleep and eventually gave in and got up. I took a bath and they got even stronger. Then I got worried. I'm almost 36 weeks and that's just too dang early for *me.* I mean, I'm all about getting this be be out, but anything before 37 weeks means I can't do a waterbirth at the hospital, so I was praying the contractions would stop. And, of course they did. They puttered over the course of the day. Coming about every 10 mins, then 15 mins then left. Unfortunately it left me very tired and crampy and just dead to the world. Oh the joys of false labor! Happens every time. I hoping it at least did me some good. Maybe a little ripening or dilating. Who knows...

So needless to say, I slept well last night. Like a rock, in fact. This morning I made myself some steel cut oatmeal and a Red Raspberry Leaf tea. My uterus has completely stopped contracting and I felt up for a walk. I walked 2 miles in the brisk air and felt good. I know baby is moving lower and lower because the back pain during my walks is getting lower and lower. Shifting and changing each day. People ask me why I keep walking if it hurts my back so much. Well, the problem aren't the walks, it's the baby. And the walks will only help the BABY come out, so I'm willing to subject myself for the odds of an earlier and smoother eviction. :) Plus, I get the cool endorphin release afterwards and that's really nice.

I'm going to do some yoga stretches tonight before bed. I gotta make some more room in there some how. Or at least give my muscles some comfort of some sort. I must say this every time, but I cannot wait to own my body again! I'll willingly give up the boobs, but my stomach and back will be all mine!!

Okay, gotta run. My bath is full and my body is ready.

Good day today...

I woke with an extra pep in my step, despite staying up until 1am and waking at 6:30am.  Obviously I voted for Obama and was so overjoyed to witness history last night.  I've been in a dream like happy haze all day.  

Went to the chiropractor today and got some serious relief for my back.  So nice!  Then I went for a 2 mile walk.  I really felt a lot of pressure from homeboy's head.  So the walk was very slow, but good.  I got a dose of endorphins the last half of the walk that was amazing.  I was in a zone and felt really good.  I imagined getting the same surge of endorphins in labor and just allowing myself to get in the labor zone.  It was a good thing.  Labor, for me, is a lot like running.  It's a physical challenge that you can accomplish by believing you can do it and letting your body keep going.  Mind over matter.  Then just plain surrender.  

Here's todays menu: 

Breakfast:

Ezekiel bread with Smart balance and jam

Water

Mocha with a shot of protein

Exercise: walk 2 miles

Lunch:

Cat fish sandwich w/ some fries  (promise I didn't eat all the fries!)

Water

Snack:

Milk

Vitamuffin

Dinner:

Verdict out.  Probably Ed's leftover turkey sandwich from lunch.  Or some TJ's vegetarian chili.  

Bedtime early tonight!

I'm getting a hankering to make some soups.  I'd love some homemade Tomato Basil!  Anyone have a good recipe?

Also-some of you asked for the Raisin Walnut Bread recipe.  I'll post that tomorrow!  Sorry I'm a slacker. :)

35 weeks....

Early morning...

Well my body pretty much decided it was done sleeping at 5am.  I made a good dent in the book I'm reading for book club so at least I was productive.  The bath is running now to sooth my achy back.  How can a back ache after a good night's rest?  Anyway, I've got carpool duty and then I'm off to vote!  GO OBAMA!

Last night was not pretty.  This pregnancy is kicking my ass.  After we got the kids to bed I went to lie down in my bed and was just miserable.  Every ^%$*%&* part of me aches.  I called Ed upstairs and asked him to rub my back.  And then I just starting crying like a baby.  I don't remember it being this bad the last two times.  So there I was heaving and crying while Ed rubbed my back.  It was only 9pm and at some point I fell asleep.  Thank God.

I'm hoping today is better.  I really want to walk, but I'm sort of scared walking is going to make my back pain worse.  But yet I do want to walk to get this butter ball down!  It's a catch 22.   I'm counting down the hours until my next Chiro appt.  I had graduated to only one adjustment a week but I'm thinking I need to do two.  We'll see.

In the mean time (despite this weekend which was full of Halloween candy) I want to focus on getting some clean food in me.   I'm a believer in the "food is thy medicine" bit and I've just been putting some nasty stuff in me lately.  (Despite my no carb or processed junk rant the other day).  Probably not the best idea to start that in the midst of Halloween.  Anyhoo, the plan is FRESH.  Fresh foods.  Eating better is going to help alleviate my pain I hope.  I need energy and sugar and junk ain't gonna cut it.  

Body? Are you in there somewhere?

You know you're pregnant and over it when you take your kids on a short bike ride (them riding, not me) down one street and you're pretty sure you earned roughly 8 APs.  And that was after a good nap.  God help me....

I have these visions of going back to the YMCA and lifting my weights and seeing my buff arms and feeling totally energized.  I was watching Survivor tonight and seeing the challenges and thinking: "Hey, we did that in Heat class!"    It....will...happen....again.  For now it's just so hard not having the energy to do those things, but so desperately wanting to.  I miss fitness!!  I can't explain it but I truly want to run so badly.  But for now the bowling ball in my crotch is holding me back.  Instead my 1-2 miles walks will have to do.  And at this point, my main motivation for walking is to move baby down and help get me ready for labor.  I remember feeling so miserable at 9 months with Amelia that I felt like a million bucks immediately post partum- sleep deprivation, sore nipples and all!  I can only dream of sore nipples now....  I cannot wait!  Oh yeah and then the baby.  What's his name?  

I just keep telling myself: my ass is smaller than it was with the other two pregnancies. I know I sound vain. Probably because I am. LOL My ass is one of the few things that brings me joy about my physical body at this point.   I may have a "multiples" belly, but by God my ass is doing okay.   Every day I lose a little bit more of my ankles.  The fluff is taking over.  Invading the boney parts.  But enough about me...

Tomorrow is Halloween.  I'm going to the Fall Festival at the kid's preschool and helping out with games.   Let's hope no poor soul decides to make a questionable comment about my belly.  God help them.  I'm in no mood.  I can see myself smacking someone and running out with my kids.  Then we have a parade at 5pm in our neighborhood.  Then a cookout.  Then Trick or Treating.  A nap is definitely in order.  Yowza.  

Quote of the day by Publix employee

"Why are you still going out?"

I'm on a roll

It's 8:20am and I've already made scrambled eggs and turkey bacon for the kids and myself.  They are dressed down to the shoes (shoes are key) and I don't have to leave for carpool duty for 30 more mins!!!  Amelia is having a play date with her bff.  So I'll have some official alone time and I plan on going to Trader Joe's for some good stuff.  I haven't been there in forever. We need some basics and I need to stock up on some frozen prepared stuff.  I plan to have another bout of cooking and freezing here soon, but in the mean time I want to get some easy stuff that will prevent us from dialing take out.  

I took the dog and walked 2 miles yesterday.  I think my dog gets car sick.  Once we got to the park she promptly took a dump and then threw up.  Then she was happy as a clam walking.  Two miles felt good in the cold weather.  So much more manageable.  And, of course, by the end of the walk I feel like a bowling ball is literally in my pelvis.  Ain't that just precious????

I swear every time I go on that route I envision myself bolting into a run and feeling my body move faster.  I cannot wait to run again.  I say that a lot...

Tonight the family is going to see the Atlanta Thrashers.  Ed's been asking me if we'd want to go to a hockey game before the baby is born.  The four of us.  We figured we might as well get it in now.  Fischer has a blast.  Amelia has never been.  I'm hoping she'll love it.  But there's always that possibility that she revolts and I end up walking her around the shops in the arena.  Whatever the case, it will be a fun experience for the kids.  

Today's line up:

Breakfast:

Scrambled eggs

Turkey bacon

Apple

Glass of skim milk

Snack:

Grande non fat, no whip mocha- add protein

Lunch:

Salad with feta, chicken, almonds, cranberries with homemade honey dijion vinegarette

Apple

Snack:

String cheese

Handful of almonds

RRL tea

Dinner:

Hockey game (I'll try my best to keep it at a reasonable portion!)

FYI- I recently discovered that I could add protein to my mochas at Starbucks.  Granted, it's only 5g- but hey!  Good to know..

Back in the swing...

It's been birthday weekend at our house so I've been busy with my mom in town and celebrating Fischer's and my birthday (we share a birthday).  I cannot tell you how much sugar I've had in the last week.  It's been out of control!  It's to the point where I feel sick thinking about sugar.  I'm glad it's Monday.

Today I'm taking my neglected pup on a walk.  She's been acting out lately (chewing up toys and hyperactive) and I know it's because she needs some activity.  I keep going on my walks without her because I drive to a park to walk and end up running errands afterwards and don't feel like toting a dog in my car.  I don't know why I don't like walking in my neighborhood.  I guess it's not big enough and there are lots of hills.  Hills and Jen aren't friends right now.

I'm *thinking* about cutting out carbs the remainder of this pregnancy.  I hate low carb diets.  HATE them.  But, that seems to be what I over eat most.  Plus, the sugar is just out of hand.  And since I have a history of packing it on in the last weeks, I thought I'd follow what my last OB suggested when I was gaining too much with Amelia.  He just said not to eat anything white.  So, whole grains are okay.  Whole wheat pasta is fine- once a day.   But cut out sugar, bread, processed junk.  We'll see.  I've give it a test run today.  I'm moving so slow already I'm a bit scared of how much slower I'll get if I gain a lot in the next 6 weeks.  

So, the plan today is 2 miles this morning and then back to the house to clean a bit and get some laundry done.  Maybe even a nap before the kids get back from school.  Ed and my mom bought me porch swings for my birthday.  One for the front porch that hangs and one for the back deck that's freestanding.  I plan to let the kids play outside all afternoon and swing.  

Fall is finally in the air

I'm back from my book club weekend in the mountains and feeling very refreshed! It could not have been more perfect, other than more days to spend there. The leaves were vibrant and at peak color. The weather was cool and crisp and we made the most of our time cooking and eating good food and sipping hot chocolate. And I might add there were a few times I laughed so hard I had genuine concerns I was going to push my baby out. LOL

I've been walking twice this week. Both 2 miles each. Feeling good during the walks with the cool air. I'm starting to crash hard core in the afternoons. This poses a problem since that's the time my kids need a lot from me. 7 more weeks....

I had an appt today with my midwife. I was surprised to hear baby was already in my pelvis. She showed me where she felt his shoulders and chin, but head was way down. This surprised me and didn't. My babies have always been floating and high- even at 40 weeks. I've never had a baby that was "way down there." But, like I said last week, I've had a feeling he's dropped down. Good news! :) I guess my long walks are paying off.

This week is a busy week. My mom comes in town tomorrow, we have a waterbirth class that evening, then Fischer's birthday party is Saturday. Oh yeah, and my birthday is on Saturday too. It seems when your baby comes on your birthday, you are going to be forever overshadowed. I guess I don't really mind this year. Being 8 months pregnant and turning 30 isn't really all that fun. I'll have to have a 31st throw down party to remember. Hey, and by then- I'll be at goal! :) Ah...the days of size 4's and no back pain....

Going for a walk late this afternoon. In the mean time: nap.

Leaving for a weekend with the ladies...

This weekend my book club girls and I are going to my mom's mountain house in Boone. I'm very excited and ready to relax, eat good food and have good conversation that isn't interrupted by children. :) We're headed out here in an hour and I've still go to pack some stuff. We're carpooling up together so it should be fun with a bunch of ladies packed into my Odyssey. Only two of us are pregnant, so perhaps we won't stop quite as often as we do with the kids to pee and stretch our legs.

I went walking yesterday. 2 miles. Hard, once again. But good. Man, I cannot wait to be able to move more freely. I "cleaned out" my current iPod selections and put some oldies and goodies back on it. I needed to change it up a a bit. I'm anxious to have my 6 miler mix going and be able to run 6 miles again. Music always reminds me a running. Not sure why. I find running with good music so relaxing.

I plan to get to the trail I walk on in the mountains. 2 miles. Beautiful. I'll post pics when we get back!

Quick post....

Yesterday was a brain dead day. I woke up, got the kids dressed and got them over to the neighbor's house since she was doing carpool that day. She looked at me and then I realized- SHIT! It's MY carpool day. Where is my brain? So I loaded them up and took them to school. Amelia and I then planted flowers on the back patio in pots. Amelia is a good gardener. Loves dirt and loves flowers. We ate a quick lunch of leftover pork tacos and headed back to school to pick up the boys (why does it seem like you have to turn right back and pick them up just as soon as you drop them off?). We came home and literally played outside the rest of the day. I did some more weeding and planting. It went slow because I was on my hands and knees and scooted on my butt in the garden. Bending is just not an option anymore. Suffice to say, I did not go on a walk yesterday. Gardening was enough.

I'm going to take it easy today and rest today. No intentional exercise on the agenda. My laundry needs some attention, as does the kid's room. There are clothes everywhere and toys everywhere. I usually make them clean it while I give instruction, but today I'd rather wipe it out myself. This will consist of me, on my hands and knees, sniffing out the urine soaked pants from the clean pants (my kids enjoy pulling out multiple sets of clothes and both happen to be potty training). I'm thinking about calling that show "Dirty Jobs" and seeing if that guys wants to take my place one day.

I'm so pumped! Friday I'm leaving for Boon to my Mom's mountain house with 6 girls from my book club. We're going up for a childless/husbandless weekend of wine, good food and our latest book discussion. My mom said the weather is cool and the leaves are at their peak of color. I cannot wait! Friday cannot come sooner. I've given explicit instructions to my husband that he is to feed the kids processed frozen ready made junk food to the kids, use paper plates only and not invite the other widowed husbands over to crash our house. I love having people over, but I don't love it when I come home to what appears to be remnants of a frat party when I've been away. I know, I know. I shouldn't complain. My husband is willingly taking the kids for me. No questions asked. I'm very grateful. He's amazing like that.

Okay, Tide and Downy are calling my name......

Goal today:

Drink more water
Eat more fruit
Avoid left over Banana Cake

Birthday Monday...

Had a good day today.  My man turned 30 and just wanted a chill family celebration.  I made Pulled Pork Tacos  with chips, salsa and guacamoli.  Then for dessert I made Banana Cake .  The husband loved it.  Birthday success!

I was able to get in a 2 mile walk this morning after my chiro appt.  Felt much better.  The weather was cooler and the wind was blowing.  It felt good.  I can tell this baby is sitting lower than my others.  When I walk I can feel him really low in my pelvis.  And then there's those lovely shooting pains all down the crotch area.   Precious....  

Two days ago I felt like I was out of room near my ribs and now I feel like I can breathe easier.  Plus my belly looks sort of different and my pants "flap" keeps slipping down.  That wasn't happening before.  Of course, this all pretty much means nothing.   Man, it would be lovely to go earlier this time.  But I'm not going to write off a Christmas Eve baby.  I'm due the 10th, but I could potentially go 42 weeks and that would put us at the 24th.   So I've got the 24th in my head so that I'll be pleasantly surprised.  

Amelia and I have plans to plant flowers tomorrow while Fischer is at school.  If it's cool, I'll take her on a walk.  If not, I'll skip it.  We'll see.  

Walking sometimes feels like I'm climbing Mt Everist

I don't know what has happened in the last few weeks, but I'm getting really, really slow. Walking has become like climbing a hill.  A steep hill.  I just went on a walk with my friend and our kids.  I thought for sure I was going to die.  That's not like me at all.  Exercise has been my saving grace through this pregnancy.  And it's always been relatively easy up until now.  But just thinking about it makes me feel extremely tired.  Ugh.  I hate this.  I'm ready for my body and energy to be back up.  

I have no plans to stop.  But I'm going to have to pace myself and slow down.  

 Must. Keep. Going.  

Perhaps today my resolve was down a bit by my children constantly whining throughout the entire walk.  

"Can we get out?"  No.  *Burst into tears* 

 "Are we going to the park?"  No.  *Burst into tears*  

"Why is the pavement cracked?"  I don't know.  *Burst into tears*

Over and over and over.  

By the end I was about to burst into tears.  I'm not going on a walk again with my kids until this baby is out.  Pushing that double jogging stroller while enduring constant whine is enough to make me drop the kids off at Good Will and pray for the best.  "I'm going to sell you to the gypsies" as my dad used to tell us.  

I will, however, keep walking alone.  MWF I can do that- as the kids are both in school.  I need to shoot for morning too because by afternoon I'm just done.  

It's been a really rough day physically. 

Oh thank God it's Wednesday!

Fall Break is officially over and my kids are school!!!  I've got CNN on and drinking my homemade mocha and planning my day.  It's raining outside, so I think the first priority of the day will be to get a walk in on the treadmill.  It's been 4 days.   Today is the first day I've felt up to doing some real exercise.   My goal is 2 miles.  If I feel good, maybe 3.

I finally got my custom made orthodics from the chiropractor yesterday.  I wore them all day and they definitely make a difference in how my back feels.  Fallen arches suck.  I'm so glad I bit the bullet and had them made.  The store bought ones weren't really doing it for me.  

I've been thinking a lot about being OP once this baby comes.  I miss that excitement of seeing the scale drop in numbers.  It is such a big motivation for me and really helps me stay OP.  It's so hard staying OP when you know you're gaining anyway.  Like I said before, I have no clue what I weigh right now.  I won't get on the scale and I don't look at my prenatals.  I do know that I'm still in medium maternity jeans and I'm 8 months.  That's a victory in and of itself.  With Amelia I was in XL.  Fischer- L.  So the fact that I'm still in medium jeans is my NSV.  Tops, on the other hand-- I'm a L.  Mainly (as you can see in my humorous photo below) that I'm all freaking belly.   Well, and ass and thighs, but the obvious is the belly.  :)  My belly acts as though it's trying to win a race and stick it's nose further and further out every day.  No wonder my poor skin couldn't recover and just gave up and resorted to a skin apron after I lost all my weight with Amelia.  Poor little skin...  Poor little skin that I want to hack off and tuck.....  Wait, where was I?

Oh yeah,  NSV!  (Non scale victory)  I'm finding that being pregnant and staying OP is completely based on NSVs.  Numbers just don't mean a darn thing.  Like I said, I've gained about the same as the other pregnancies, but my body is shaped differently and my "size" is smaller.  Which, will be easier to take off afterwards.  And I'm also more focused on healthy foods.  Not to say I don't eat crap sometimes, because I do.  But I'm also way more likely to eat a salad and get my fruit and dairy in than I was before.  And I never did exercise with either of my other pregnancies.  The fact that I love exercise and crave it is such a funny thing when I think about my mind set 5 years ago.  

That said.  I need to hop on the treadmill!

Dare me to show up at the gym like this?

31 weeks.  

How to knit a baby hat by lunch

I woke up at 7am with a stuffy head and runny nose.  I still don't have much of an appetite.  I'm not up to cleaning or playing with the kids or exercising, but I needed something to do.  We normally go to church on Sundays, but with Ed and I being sick and Amelia having a runny nose- better not.  So I decided to knit Shepherd a hat!  Amelia was happy to help while watching Playhouse Disney.  :)

Pick some colors from your stash

1 cup of coffee, Playhouse Disney and half way done!

Stripes!

Cutting in.

And you have a hat!  

P.S.  When your hands are busy and your mind is occupied, you're less likely to eat mindlessly.  Maybe knitting will be my friend these last two months of pregnancy.

Germs...

I officially caught Ed's cold.  I woke up feeling like hell.  Clammy, throat hurting, yada, yada, yada.  The kids and I ran to Costco to get paper goods and dog food.  My poor dogs have been out of food for two days and I've been giving them scraps.  Once I got back I pretty much hit a wall.  Luckily my husband had mercy on me and let me take a nap.  The nap basically extended into the evening.  My body just needed rest.  There are some perks in working for yourself.  Thank God Ed had a day where he could take the kids.  

I caved and bought some bulk dry goods at Costco.  I know I said I'd wait until Monday to buy any food.  But I was there and already used the gas, so I bought some stuff.  They have Kirkland's brand Organic Instant Oatmeal.  The last box I bought lasted us 3 months. Picked that up.  I also got some applesauce, canned fruit, canned veggies and some bulk lean ground beef and ground turkey.  I feel like we're stocked for the month.  

I haven't had much of an appetite today.  But here's my tracker, nonetheless.  Unfortunately I'm not up for walking.  I'm going to let my body rest and then pick back up Monday.

Breakfast:

Homemade Whole Wheat Raisin-Almond bread with whipped cream cheese (2 slices)

Mocha

Lunch:

Annie's mac-n-cheese

Salad with romaine, carrots, tomatoes, mozz cheese, sunflower seeds, crutons and videlia onion dressing.  (Very good!)

***slept all afternoon***

Dinner:

Blueberry yogurt with some grape nuts sprinkled on top

peach

Glass of Emergen-C

I have a baked potato in the oven for later.  Ed ordered pizza for the kids since he's in charge.  LOL Luckily I'm not at all tempted to eat any.  Doesn't sound good at all. 

Thrifty and Fit

I'm trying really hard to be thrifty lately.   I'm determined to cut our grocery budget in order to save.  This is really hard for me.  I'm the type of girl that would rather spend gobs of money on lots of food than on a new pair of shoes or highlites.  I just like having lots of good options in the house.  Meals, snacks, special treats, etc.  And I think I've told myself that the more money I spend on groceries, the better odds I have of staying OP.  

But now I'm challenging myself to stretch what I have and still be as healthy as possible when it comes to cooking and eating.  I haven't been to the grocery in 5 days.  That's a big deal for me.  I love the grocery store.  I'd go every day if I could.  My goal is to use what I have and not got until Monday.  So today I got creative and searched my cabinets for some dry ingredients that I can pull a meal together with.  I'll always have the frozen meals in my freezer if I get desperate, but I also have a bunch of dry goods sitting there week after week waiting to be used.  

I had everything to make pizza except crust.  I got out my bread manual found a whole wheat pizza dough recipe.  It's working it's magic now for lunch.  Then I found some pork chops in my freezer that need to be cooked.  I threw them in the crockpot with some Lipton Soup Beefy Onion mix and water.  That'll be dinner.  I also have a ton of frozen veggies that I'm going to make used of this week.  

Snacks.  I get stumped here often.  I always want *something* to snack on.  But ready made snacks are expensive.  So I found some Vita Brownie mix I've had for a while (Thanks to Jen Carr- yeah, it's been in my pantry this whole time) and I made those.  Then I made some chocolate pudding in individual containers.  I'm out of milk and decided to use my non fat dry milk to make them.  Their in the frig setting.  Dry milk comes in handy.  I made another quart for cereal.  I don't think I'm ready to drink it solo yet.

Fruit is where I get stumped.  We go through a ton of fresh fruit here.  Peaches have been particularly good lately and we've been inhaling them.  Bananas too.  I do have some canned mandarins and some frozen fruit.  I'm going to experiment with smoothies to get our fruit in.

Here's my meal plan today:

Breakfast: 

Whole Wheat Bagel with whipped cream cheese and blueberry preserves

1/2 cup coffee with cream and sugar

Snack:

FF popcorn

Glass of raspberry flavored Emergen-C

Lunch:

Whole Wheat pizza with mushrooms and onions

Brussel sprouts with cheese sauce (frozen pack)

Snack:

Chocolate pudding w/ grape nuts (for fiber)

Dinner:

Pork Chops

Canned Collard Greens with seasoning (greens)

Snack:

Smoothie (Made with frozen fruit medley)

10 weeks left (or 12)

So I've had this goal in my head from the beginning of my pregnancy to make it to 30 weeks.  I'm not sure why 30 weeks was so important to me.  Maybe it's the final count down.  The home stretch. But I made it! 

 This pregnancy has been the hardest for me.  And I hesitate to even complain at all because I know it's a blessing to be pregnant period.  But I cannot tell you how much I look forward to being able to stand up and walk without pain.  Or bend over.  Or hold my kids in my lap.  Or bend over.  The only reason I continue walking is because it's the only time I'm not in pain.  When you walk you don't have to bend, twist or lift anything.  You just walk.  

This morning I'm going to the chiropractor and then coming back home to do some laundry and clean a little.  When I spend a few days running errands, I come home and realize my house needs some TLC.  I swear, like shoveling snow in a blizzard. 

I'm planning a walk later at some point.  Probably just in the neighborhood with the kids.  Maybe a dog or two if they're lucky.  I've walked 4 days in a row!  My goal is to walk everyday throughout the remainder of the pregnancy.  It's good for my body and baby.  

30 weeks!

Had my prenatal visit this morning.  Waited 2 hours to see Margaret.  That's what you get when you want the best midwife in Atlanta.   I got on the scale backwards so I couldn't see it.  So, instead I began analyzing the "clicks" to be sure I wasn't to far up.   Either I'm 300 lbs or I'm still under 200.  Verdict is still out...

Baby is doing fine.  I'm measuring right on target, which is weird for me.  I usually measure 2-4 weeks ahead.  That's just my style.  So, hey, maybe this kid won't be too late after all.  I won't hold my breath.

I got to get a shot in my butt.  I'm RH negative so I get a rhogam shot so my body won't produce antibodies and eat my baby  :).  Amelia was absolutely fascinated by it.  She was all up in there watching the nurse give me the shot.  So funny.  Then the midwife let her measure my belly with the tape.  She loved it.  I swear she'll be a nurse, doula or midwife.  She loves taking care of things like that.  Very concerned and task oriented.  And loves babies...in utero.  Not so much when they're out.  LOL

Amelia protested her afternoon nap.  Ya know how they fall asleep in the car and then won't go back to sleep in their beds?  Well, that sucks.  So now I'm about to put my walking shoes on and head to the park where there is a 2 mile trail and then a playground at the end.  I'll let the kids run around until dinner time and then we'll come home.  It's all about survival.

Tonight's menu is white chili with homemade whole wheat bread.  I'm going to set the bread maker before I leave and set the chili I already made out to thaw.  I LOVE not making dinner!

Kept true to my word

I went on a walk tonight.  I ended up driving to my SIL's house to pick up some baby stuff she was giving me.  She lives an hour north of me, so the kids and I just made it a road trip of sorts.  It was fun.  But I was tired by the time we got back home.  So I rested.  Went to chiropractor after dinner and then came back and loaded the kids in the strollers and we had a family walk.  

Tomorrow is my prenatal appointment.  I'm taking both kids with me since it's fall break and they don't have school.  God help me....

Today's agenda

1.  Sit on my ass til 11 ish.

2.  Take kids on a walk at some point.

3.  Eat (like I need help remembering that)

That's about all I can think about right now.  Kids are on Fall Break from school so I've got to get creative this week.  I see some playground visits in my future.  And where there is a playground, there's usually a trail of some sort for walking.  Two birds with one stone. 

Fat face has kicked in.  But I think I already mentioned that a few days ago.  Now Fat Knees have flared up.  I swear, why can't I be one of those pregnant chicks that have those cute little legs throughout their pregnancy.  Like an apple on two sticks.  I'm more like an apple on two corn dogs.  My legs just grow.  I don't get it.  Especially with all the exercise I'm doing.  But oh well.  I think my body retains water like a fiend.  I'm that girl that drops 35 lbs immediately after delivery.  But I'm also that girl that gains 50 lbs.  

At this point I have no clue what I weigh.  I cannot weigh myself.  And I do not look at my weight at my prenatal appointments.  I cannot think about numbers right now.  All I can think about is making healthy choices and maintaining some sort of fitness.  I know I can lose it afterwards.  Especially since I lost the bulk of my weight without exercise at all.  Now I have the habit of exercise to help me.  Who knows, maybe by summer I'll be back in my size 4s!  Maybe...

Back in the groove..

Kids are back! Now where can I ship them off again??? :) No, we missed them like crazy and are very happy they are home with us. And they've been little darlings which is suspicious. But I'll take it!

I've officially organized my fridge with my frozen meal stock supply. Lots of options for the next week.  I'm also rekindling the romance with my bread machine. I think I'll just make my own bread from now on. It's incredibly easy (which earns me no granola points) and cheap! We're getting 'die hard' on eliminating eating out. It's just too much money and I'd rather save that and the gas it takes to get there.  We had church this morning and then I came home and got to work on some more cooking to freeze.  

When Amelia wakes up from her nap I'm planning to take the kids on a walk in the neighborhood and stop at the park to play.  Trying to get some exercise with the kids, other than finding time to do it when they're asleep.  No excuses, right?

Here's a small photo series of my cooking/freezing day:

Thawing this out to bring to my neighbors for dinner.  They're smoking beef tips and I'm bringing my casserole as a side.  And some homemade white bread.

Made some quiches.  One on the left has sauteed green onions, green peppers, and canadian bacon.  Everything else is the same as the basic Tomato Basil Recipe (minus basil).  The one on the right is the basil quiche.   My husband and kids LOVE quiche, so I can never have too much.
Cleaned up my freezer a bit.  I froze all the soups/stews flat on a cookie tray so that they'd stack compactly.  So my middle rack has all my frozen meals in it.   That's actually 6 meals there!  Not counting the two quiches I have cooling to freeze.
And...my fridge.  Nothing particularly cool other than it's fun to look at what people's fridge is stocked with.  Can you tell we like eggs?
And my beloved bread machine.  Been a nice companion over the last few weeks.  It's saved me from buying coffee cake and breakfast breads at Starbucks.

Thursday...

Thursday morning, last day of freedom before we pick up the kids.  I just took Penny on a walk around the neighborhood.  I actually had to put a jacket on!  I love this Fall weather.  I walked 30 mins.  I need to calibrate my Nike iPod to walking so that I can track my mileage.  I only have it calibrated for running.  And THAT isn't happening for another few months.  

I'm meeting a neighbor friend for tea at her house this morning.  Then afterwards I'm going to make a bunch of meals to freeze for next week.  I bought all the ingredients yesterday.  

Here's the line up:

Tomato Basil Quiche

Broccoli and Rice Casserole

White Chili

Enchiladas

Chicken & Dumplings 

Pumpkin Pie

Hello Dollies (for my friend that just had her baby)

I also made some Apple Walnut Coffee Cake in my bread machine.  I'm going to take it with me for tea.  :)

I'm on a roll.....

Went on a walk with the dog!  30 mins.  Check!

Getting creative with fitness...

Well, after much thought and a hard look at finances,  I've decided to cancel my YMCA membership. :(  As I'm sure you all know, I LOVE the Y.  I have an obsession with the Y.  But given my current state of pregnancy- I can't take advantage of the classes, which are the real reason I go.  The classes have become too much for me and my back.  So the times I go I've spent on the elliptical or treadmill.  And I have a treadmill here at home.  That and I'm really enjoying the weather and my walks outside.  So, I'm going to say "good bye" to the Y until this little one inside me is old enough to be in the childcare and do well.  I'm shooting to run a 10 k in March.  So I'll begin training at 6 weeks PP.  That means lots of outside running.  So hopefully by next Spring I'll be back in classes at the Y.  In the mean time, I'll think fondly of it in my heart.  :)

My plan now is to walk a little each day.  Some days more intense than others.  But movement is key for me.  If I stop moving, my body is stiff.   I need to get some dumbbells, as that's the main thing I'll be missing from the Y.  I have 5 lbs, but I use 8 lbs too.  Beyond that, I'm going to come up with my own little fitness plan to finish out this pregnancy.  Like my blog says- Quitting is simply not an option. I will not let canceling the Y membership set me back on exercise.  I have a couple prenatal yoga DVDs I want to make use of too.  

Change has always been good for me.  

As far as food.....  I'm craving bread and cheese.  Constantly.  I made some raisin nut bread in my bread maker the other day and it's all I want.  A slice with a little butter and I'm happy as a clam.  I'm also craving milk.  I'm not a big milk drinker, so it's strange that I'm pouring a whopping glass of milk and downing it twice a day.  At least it's skim....  Guess baby needs some calcium.  You'd think the massive amount of Tums I pop would be suffice.  

Today I'm going to rest a little and then take the pup for a walk.  2 miles.  Then I'll come back and do some strength exercises and stretching.  I need to research some good stretching for my ribs and lower back.  It feels stiff and I'm hitting that phase where I can't breath easily.  Stretching would be good for me.

Tracker so far:

Breakfast:

Slice of raisin nut bread

Butter

Grapes

Snack:

Grande Mocha (skim)

Lunch:

Grilled cheese with salami

Bread and Butter pickle

Chocolate pudding

Snack:

Raisin Nut bread (ahem)

Dinner:

Not sure yet. 

Gas, traffic court and APs

Last night Ed and I took the dogs on a walk in the early evening.   Then afterwards we decided to have a spontaneous romantic dinner at a local Italian place.  We figured since we were childless, it would be fun to just go.  You mamas know that just doesn't happen after chillren.  Ed eats his Lemon veal over pasta thingy which was MUCH better than my Eggplant Parmesean (Kelle- remember those days?  Doesn't work!).  Luckily I had my fill of garlic knots.    

Anyway, I  had a quarter of a tank of gas in my car and had traffic court in the morning and was supposed to drive up an hour away to my sister in laws to pick up some baby stuff.  We figured I better fill up now than, in the morning.  Everywhere we went was out.  OUT.  EVERYWHERE!  We live downtown and ended up driving all the way out to the suburbs to find a place.  Well, actually we didn't find a place at first.  In fact, we wasted my entire 1/4 tank of gas trying to find a place.   Only two places had gas and were completely swamped with cars lined up down 4 lane roads.  It was so weird.  Ed kept saying it was so creepy.   We decided to wait in line at one place, which ran out of gas while we waited and then two people ended up fighting for the last pump.  It was then that we realized that we should stop by his parents house who were close by and see if they had some gas for the mower that could get us home.  Luckily they did.  So we head back downtown and miraculously find a QuickTrip that had no lines and plenty of gas!  Very strange.  We filled up.  

I get in bed at 12:30am and my alarm goes off at 7:00am.  I head out to my $*^&(^#$@$@ traffic court appointment.  You see, a few weeks ago I was backing out of my driveway and bumped a plumbing truck that was park directly behind my driveway.  No damage to his car at all. Small scratch on mine.  He INSISTS on calling the cops.  I get a ticket.  So this morning I show up and realize I have to plead No Lo as pleading "not guilty" (by reason of no damage) will result in a court date around my due date.  So...after 3 hours of sitting and waiting, I get to make my plea and pay $235.  Great.  Just great.  That's $235 I need right now.  Ugh.  Not only that, but the elevators were broken and I had to walk up and down 5 flights.  I was huffing and puffing like a cow in labor.  In fact, the court officer was very sweet to me and I think it's because he thought was seriously about to pop as I waddled in.  Anyway, these scenarios only bring out what my CAM friends call "The Plap."  Pregnancy induced rage.  I have no idea why we call it the Plap- but it feels right.  

I'm counting those damn flights of stairs as some APs earned.  At least I'll get something out of this day.  

So far I've had some homemade Raisin Nut Bread I put in the bread maker last night.  3 slices.  One of them with cream cheese.  And a glass of skim milk. That's been my breakfast and snack. I'm too tired to make lunch.  I'm going to take a nap and hopefully I'll wake up bright eyed and bushy tailed.  I have some cleaning to do.