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.