Weight Loss Challenge Update

join the fun!

So for those of you following along, how did your week go?

Here's my updated stats:

• 12/1: 1X9.8lbs 12/8: 1X7.8lbs 2lb loss!
• Hips 12/1: 46"  12/8:  45" 1" loss!
• Waist 12/1: 39.5" 12/8: 39.5"  Same
• Left Thigh 12/1: 24" 12/8: 24" Same
• Left Arm- 12/1: 15" 12/8: 14" 1" loss!

Here's how my goals went:

Drink 5 glasses of water a day - I know you are supposed to drink 8, but honestly I can go all day with 3-4 drinks (this includes coffee, milk, soda, juice).  Failed.  Got up to 3-4 glasses, but most days didn't make it to 5 each day.

Make 5 out of 7 dinners include salad as half of the plate. Passed.  This one was almost too easy.

Go on two walks this week. Passed.  Walked around the mall a couple times.

Complete the Petite Athleat's the 300 challenge at least 4 out of 7 days a week. Failed. I only got to 3, my stomach was having a few pinches of pain since its still healing from my c-section in August.

Order all coffee drinks with no whipped cream. Passed.  Switched from holiday/special drinks to either a vanilla soy latte or just plain soy latte, there's less temptation to want whipped cream with a latte.

How to participate this week:

1. Review your goals and figure out why they didn't work if you failed.
2. Come up with 6 goals if you failed some, 7 new ones if you passed completely (as clearly you need more of a challenge!)
3. If you failed, like me, your six goals should include the ones you didn't pass.

My new goals:

• Drink 5 glasses of water a day.
• Complete the Petite Athleat's the 300 challenge at least 4 out of 7 days a week.
• Walk 3 times this week.
• Complete an arm exercise twice this week.
• Try a healthy snack first before opting for a sweet snack.
• Eat a piece of fruit 5 out of 7 days.

Lastly, have you notice any funny behaviors you've picked up about dieting?  For instance, I always feel a need to eat all the unhealthy food before dieting so its not there as a temptation.  Then I get mad at myself for gaining weight.  

Hello!

Just incase you needed a smile this morning!

Weight Loss Challenge Day 1 & 2

So as I mentioned in my last post my goal is to lose some weight in December.  This is particularly challenging for me, because I pretty much love sweets and Christmas foods.  Mint is one of my favorite flavors - do you know how many things are not very good for you but deliciously flavored with mint?

So here's the deal - we all know what's involved in weight loss, but generally don't want to do it, because it takes effort.

I'm setting 5 goals for this week that I think will help me lose some weight - I've heard that a goal should be between 1/2lb to 2lbs a week.  Which means by the end of the month I'd like to lose somewhere between 2 and 8lbs.

Goals:

1. Drink 5 glasses of water a day - I know you are supposed to drink 8, but honestly I can go all day with 3-4 drinks (this includes coffee, milk, soda, juice)
2. Make 5 out of 7 dinners include salad as half of the plate.
3. Go on two walks this week.
4. Complete the Petite Athleat's the 300 challenge at least 4 out of 7 days a week.
5. Order all coffee drinks with no whipped cream.

Current Stats:

• Okay, I'm not totally comfortable with my current weight (obviously, since I want to lose weight) but as December 1st I weighed 1X9.8lbs.  I'm uncomfortable with enough not to share the full number to the general public.
• Hips - 46"
• Waist - 39.5"
• Left Thigh-24"
• Left Arm-15"

How to Join:

• This week set 5 reasonable goals for yourself - little things that you know that if you get off the couch you can easily attain.
• Take your measurements to help figure out which areas you want to target first.
• Find a way to record your results - your own blog, facebook, google+, twitter, instagram, leaving a comment here.
• Officially record your results next Sunday

Quick update

November has been a busy month for us...

I have several things I want to blog about, unfortunately H has been a bit clingy lately and not letting me use the computer often.

I officially quit my job on 11/20 to become a Stay Home Mom.  Weird, right?  I feel more relaxed, but its very strange thinking I'm not going back, I worked my department for over ten years.

Also H had ear tubes put in, although the procedure was quick, I was terrified.  You might ask why someone so young had tubes put in?  Here's the story:

At birth the state requires babies to have a newborn hearing screening.  H failed in his left ear.  The said not to worry most babies pass the next time.  H passed in his left ear on the second test, but failed in his right ear.  These tests were done by speech pathologists, who then had to refer him to an audiologist.  The audiologist did another pass/fail test.  This time he failed in both ears.  This was a low point for us, we started researching hearing loss in infants, wondering if we should learn sign language, and it took a lot not to cry, realizing that there was a chance that H wouldn't have a "normal" childhood like C.  After that appointment, H was scheduled for an ABR test at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.  That was our first bit of hope, the audiologist there determined that H's ear drums weren't moving correctly due to fluid trapped behind the drum.  She referred us to an Ears, Nose, & Throat doctor.  That doctor determined the best course of action for H was to put in tubes so that his ears would drain.  H had this procedure done on the morning of 15th.  By that afternoon, we could see that he was already hearing better.  We have a follow up soon, where they will determine if there is any hearing loss at all, but I am so hopeful.  Until the ABR test I didn't even know his hearing could improve or that in theory his hearing could be so easily fixed.  We are so grateful that things how things have turned out so far.  

Since the procedure, H really doesn't want us out of his sight though, I don't know if its a normal baby phase, something to do with having surgery, or if suddenly being able to hear better is scary.

Lastly, starting December 1st, I'm going to start a holiday weight loss challenge - anyone is welcome to join me.  My main goal is to lose some weight (no specific number) rather than add on some (which is typical with peppermint mochas and cookies being readily available.)  I promise I won't bore you with a list of things I ate today.  If you blog feel free to join me in the challenge, if you don't blog feel free to join me as well via the comments section, twitter, or facebook.  Looking forward to starting 2014 slightly thinner than I was in 2013!

A Celebratory Weekend!

I can't believe its already been another year, but C's Second Birthday has already passed.  This year we tried to keep things simple.  We also were celebrating H's Baptism, so we had a joint party for that with our families.

C is really into robots, so everything this weekend has a robot theme.  For his actual party we had fancy grilled cheese sandwiches (his favourite) and soup for M & I.  I made a pan of brownies and then cut the squares so I could make it a robot.  I then decorated it with mini M&Ms and blue icing.  With only three people eating the "cake" I didn't want to make anything too big.

His big presents this year were a balancing bike and Hanna Andersson Star Wars Pajamas (sounds silly that these were a big present, but HA clothes can cost the same at the bike!  They're worth every penny though and he loves them.)

The next morning we had a breakfast party at Fun Buy The Pound.  Last year's party was easy, this year's was even easier.  We had Muchkins from Dunkin Donuts (the pumpkin ones were amazing!), bagels, and coffee.  The kids got to munch on food and run around while we had coffee.  This year I made robots out of scrapbook paper for their goody bags.  My sister was able to make shirts again to give out as favors (C is modeling it on the left), and the other big item was an articulated wooden robots from the House of Marble.  C has two of these and can't put them down!

The following morning was H's Baptism.  He wore the same outfit I made for C and it was a nice service that he slept through. After the service we had a lunch for our families at The Sewickley Cafe.  Which was wonderful - the staff was very accommodating and the food was delicious!  It was nice to have so many people together to celebrate and we finished off with a Robot Birthday Cake from Paddy Cake Bakery in Bloomfield.  C had been waiting for this cake for weeks, whenever we mention his birthday he would say I-E I-E? (which apparently is the sound robots make...)

Overall, it was a fun, exhausting weekend to celebrate two important events in our kids' lives.  Although I'm hoping we won't have so much overlap again!

Welcome Baby Bean!

So a lot has happened since my last post...including the arrival of Baby Bean!  I haven't yet decided if I should refer to him as H in this blog, or continue with bean (thoughts?)

So I woke up on August 28th very hungry and with bad back pain at 4:30am.  I didn't think much of this, well I was very pregnant, and H had put a lot of pressure on my spine all week (at my last check up he hadn't fully turned to my back), so I just figured that was all.  Around 6, I realized that I was having contractions, but they weren't regular or bad, so I told my husband to go to work.

So still in denial I did my best to get through my day - I had big plans of baking cookies and a playdate with C's friends.  After lunch I realized my contractions were getting regular and that I should probably time them, but I was still in denial, as I was scheduled for a c-section the next day.  Around 2, I realized this wasn't happening.  And the contractions were getting closer.  C was great and would hold my hand during a contraction or give me a hug.  I also realized I wasn't really packed for the hospital and C wasn't packed for a night at my parents.  So I got C to take his nap and then I started ironing my clothes to pack...crazy right?  Around 4, I told M we were at 5-6 mins(but only 45 seconds long) and I should probably call the doctor.  The doctor said I should get to the hospital, so I called my mom, who was much closer than M to me and asked for a ride.  We got to the hospital and it became clear that H was arriving earlier than scheduled.  M and I decided that the C-Section was still the best idea, and by 8pm H was here.

C has done really well being a big brother once we got home from the hospital.  He holds H's hand when H is upset, gives him hugs, and insists that H wants a pacifier all the time (C would like his all the time).  My favorite is that he can't say H's yet, so its really cute to hear him say H's name.

H has been a relatively easy baby.  He's already sleeping 3-4 hours at a time and sometimes more.  He's a hungry dude and gained almost 3lbs in his first month!  I can't wait to see his little personality grow and see how he develops.

My next post will probably be a review of C's birthday - I can't believe he'll be two in just a few days.  We also have H's baptism coming up, so its a big week for us.

Parenting...

I feel like nowadays moms feel the need to be labeled and categorized into little groups, at least that what blogs, news articles, and Facebook will tell you.  One of my favorite blogs, Fearless Formula Feeder, help start an "I Support You" campaign at the beginning of the month for World Breastfeeding Week.  For those of you who don't know, there can be a lot of animosity between breastfeeding and formula feeding, and this campaign showed photos of moms from both sides feeding their babies and declaring that whatever parenting choice you make, they would support you.  What I found interesting was how many people also mentioned other parenting choices - since it seems like there is controversy over almost every parenting choice.

It got me thinking...what other labels have I chosen or fallen into as a parent? There are some that we chose on purpose, like cloth diapering (at home only - we're trying to be frugal, but I'm not ready for a full time commitment!), but there are other parenting styles we fell into - like co-sleeping.  We don't co-sleep every night, but C is a snuggler and there's something very rewarding for me about holding my baby and watching him fall asleep.  That being said at 3am when he's decided to lay horizontal and kick me in the back, I am not such a fan of co-sleeping,  and sometimes starts a kicking war with bean (nice to know sibling rivalry starts in the womb?)  But will we co-sleep with Bean?  I don't know.  First of all, I'm worried about C jumping into bed with us and if Bean is in there what would happen.  Secondly, co-sleeping with C was organic, we didn't mean to sleep with him, it just sorta happened amongst all the exhaustion late at night.  Bean might not need to be snuggled regularly, he's certainly more active in the womb that C was, so maybe he'll want his own space?  We'll see.  So that's one type of parent I am.

But there are all sorts of other types of decisions you make, that could unknowingly put you in a category.  From what type of food to feed your baby to circumcision to car seats to what toys you let them play with.  For instance, I didn't want an exersaucer, I didn't see the point, so we got a walker - if you're bored look up what a terrible parent I am for that decision (apparently walkers delay walking, C started walking at 10 months, so I'm glad he was "delayed".)

I wonder if the internet didn't exist would we have as many strong opinions about parenting choices?  Or would we just do what seemed right for our child?  Would we still label ourselves?  Was it easier for past generations, because you just did what your mom, doctor, and close friends told you?  Rather than posting a question online and getting "informed" answers from strangers?

I recently started watching the show "Pretty Wicked Moms" on Lifetime, its a terrible bit of reality tv.  But from the beginning these ladies are labeled, "Doggy Mom","Alpha Mom", "Queen Bee", etc.  And they're all fighting to get their way of mothering recognized as being the best..  When did it become every mother's right to determine how else another mother should parent?  I know we all judge, but there's a big difference between thinking "I wouldn't give my toddler soda" and bringing homemade organic snacks to share with everyone to make sure the other kids get something healthy...

So yes, I realize I am judging mothers who judge, but here's the thing, I still support you, even if I think your way of parenting is crazy.  I am not perfect, but I am the best mom for C and Bean, and I know you will make the right choice for your kids (and when we don't make the right choice, its a lesson learned, for instance maybe co-sleeping with C is a terrible idea, and when he's 7 and I'm still getting kicked in the back because he refuses to sleep in his own bed, I realize this wasn't best idea (unless he turns out happy, healthy, and well adjusted and sleeps in own bed by then...))