Milk and Cookies!

My little guy turned one last month! As much as I wanted to ignore it, I knew I had to celebrate for no other reason than that I had a really fun theme picked out. Milk and cookies! Who doesn't love that? I searched everywhere for inspiration, or should I say Pinspiration. What did we do before Pinterest? I really wish it had been around before I got married. I digress. I will leave you with pictures of the party and my handsome big boy! Isn't he the cutest?

Mommies on a mission: Week 3

<center> <a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center> I suck at this. I want to exercise in the morning, so that I am good about what I eat and do for the rest of the day. But my baby boy has other ideas. He wants to be awake at 5:30-6 most mornings and is still waking up several times a night. Morning is cold and I'm tired.

By the end of the day when the kids are all in bed, I feel defeated by what I ate and didn't do all day. I did achieve my mini-goal of working out once. Kind of. I walked with my mom to get dinner one night.

I am not sure how to get myself motivated. Any suggestions? I'm pretty sure people are tired of reading about my not getting in to shape. I want to be on a mission!! What do you do when you get stuck in a rut?


Months Postpartum: 11.5
Pre-pregnancy weight: 119
Pregnancy weight: 180
Last weeks weight:120
Current weight: 120

Check on Mama Lake's progress!

Fluffy Butt!

I can't believe I haven't blogged about this....back in April 2012, I wrote a post about considering cloth diapering. You can read it here if you would like. Last month, a full nine months after I wrote that post, I began cloth diapering my son. I started building my stash of cloth diapers a couple of months before that but the ones I wanted were not cheap, so I only got a few at a time.

Let me tell you, there is an entire crunchy cloth diapering community out there! The funny thing is, since starting I have found some people use cloth who you would never expect to. I guess that is a little stereotyping on my part. Most mama's are helpful when it comes to questions and advice for newbies, so that's been great because with this new venture comes a whole new language!

I laughed when people said cloth diapers are addicting. I am no longer laughing. I stalk the Cotton Babies webpage for their seconds sales. For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, Cotton Babies makes a brand of diapers called Bum Genious which are the only diapers I have tried and loved so far. A seconds sale is when they sell diapers that are totally fine but may have slight imperfections for deep discounts. I have a ton of these dipes and they are perfect.

It is just going to get worse too because a friend of mine just bought a cloth diaper store. I will SO work for diapers!!

Enough talk, I will leave you with a picture of my baby and his fluffy butt!

Mommies on a Mission Week 2

<center> <a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center> Week 2...just a day late! I forgot to list the numbers in detail last week so I will do that at the end of this post. My baby turned 11 months old yesterday. I can't believe how quickly it has gone. The bad news is I am still struggling to find time to exercise. It's cold and everyone has been sick. I don't want to make excuses anymore but I didn't realize how hard it would be to fit in exercise with three kids!

For this week I want to set an easy, obtainable goal. Really easy. So here it is: Work out one time this week. That's it. I know if I can accomplish that, I will be able to go from there.

Next week I will be posting pictures!! Don't forget to check in with Mama Lake and Angela.

                         Months postpartum: 11
                         Prepregnancy weight: 119
                         End of pregnancy weight: 180
                         Last Weeks weight: 120
                         This weeks weight: 120

Mommies on a Mission: Week 1(Part 2!)

<center> <a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center>   We are back at it! My friend over at Life As A Lake  encouraged me to start blogging again as well as start Mommies on a Mission back up. It has been awhile since the last time and since then, I have gotten back to my prepregnancy weight. So my new goal is just to tighten and tone! Pre-wedding shape dare I say??

I am using products from a company called It Works to help the process along! I am busier and more tired than ever so I am not going to set any unrealistic workout goals for myself. I'm just going to take it slow and find what works for me. By the end of the year I would really love to be able to do a 5k race though!

The Battle for Homebirth

A couple of days ago, I stumbled upon a blog called A girl named Kevin. Basically, the woman who writes it, Loni, suffered the devastating loss of her daughter Aisley just last month. I obviously don't have all of the details, but what I know from her blog is that she had a homebirth and her daughter was stillborn. The baby's heart tones were steady even while she was in the birth canal. They believe that in the final moments before birth, there was a cord accident. Because this was a homebirth, Loni and her husband have come under attack. So while dealing with their immense grief, they now have to justify the fact that it was NOT their fault that their baby died.

I chose to birth my last two babies with highly trained midwives out of a hospital. I CHOSE. My husband and I CHOSE. Why is it anyone else's business where I, or any other woman, has her baby? Just last week I had to defend my choice of homebirth to the guy who processed my son's social security card. He had a completely negative attitude towards me because of it. Why does it matter to him, a complete stranger, where my baby was born?

Where you choose to labor and birth your baby is an extremely personal choice. One that is the business of the pregnant woman and her partner/baby's father/husband. I had my first child in a hospital and I chose never to do that again. I am not a birth nazi, but I am passionate about birth. I don't care where anyone else births. Well, that isn't entirely true. Pregnant friends close to me know that I will subtly mention how amazing my midwives and my homebirth experience were but I try to stop there!

I know there are women who take control of their labors in a hospital. There are women who don't mind the constant monitoring and mandatory IV and the nurses who tend to ask if you would like an epidural 15 times. Some women feel safer in a hospital. I do not judge this. I know not every hospital is a pit of hell like the one I had my daughter in. There are fabulous doctors and nurses and even midwives that work in hospitals. Just as I'm sure there are midwives that do homebirth that are the exception to the rule as well.

I was fortunate in that I had a supportive husband and family when I chose to birth at home. It is true that not everyone was comfortable with my decision but no one said anything negative to me. A lot of people are unsure about homebirth because they are not educated on it. Most women who chose homebirth end up educating themselves as well as their families and friends on the safety and benefits of it.

Excuse my ramblings. I was up most of the night with a sick baby and all of this on my mind. Please show some love to Loni on her blog if you can. I can't begin to imagine her pain and you can't have too much positive support.

Just for kicks here are some studies on the safety of homebirth:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9271961
http://www.changesurfer.com/Hlth/homebirth.html

In case you are looking for a midwife in the Sacramento area:

http://www.newearthmidwife.com/

Mommies on a Mission: Weeks 8-10

<center> <a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center>   I totally slipped the last couple of weeks! I swear its not my fault. Well, not entirely. My husband keeps bringing me home bags of sour gummy worms and he knows they are my weakness! I have been lazy, busy and tired, which is a terible combination. I figured since I was losing the weight slowly without putting in a ton of effort, I was doing just fine. My pre-pregnancy clothes fit me but they would look so much better if I got my butt into gear! I am really going to try this week.   Pre-pregnancy weight: 121 Weight at delivery: 180 Week 7 weight: 124 This weeks weight: 125   Check on Mama Lake's Progress!

Confession Friday

Here it is: I secretly want to be Michelle Duggar. She has more patience for her 95 kids than I could ever have for my 3. She's crazy organized, has a helpful husband and well behaved children, and she never has to worry about birth control. That's all.

Our New Normal

Wow have we been busy around here lately! Natalia started first grade a few weeks ago and Noelle started preschool last week. After last years ridiculous kindergarten experience (I will save that for another post!), we applied to a few charter schools and we were lucky enough to get a spot at one. The only downfall is that it is a 25 minute drive each way. So basically we are in the car most of the day M-F.

Here is Buggy on her first day of preschool!

I don't know what it was about the first two weeks of school but it was a huge adjustment for us all. Natalia went from being homeschooled all day to almost 7 hours of school a day. Not to mention my nightowl was now needing to be up and ready earlier than she was used to. What was most surprising was that it really affected Noelle and I. We both started napping with the baby in the afternoons!

Yep. Here is where I spent my afternoons for a few weeks!

So now we are getting in to more of a routine and I am getting used to being tired every day and less dependent on a daily nap. Noelle, however, still very much needs one! I am hoping not to get too burnt out on the daily drive, because Natalia's new school is amazing and we are all so happy with it.

I start working again next week and I can't wait! It is only 2 days a week but I will be happy to have a houseful of kids again. I know once that starts and I begin volunteering in both of the girls classrooms in the next few weeks we will need to adjust again. I really am someone who thrives on being busy, so hopefully the transition will be smooth!

In other news at the G house, Natalia has her first loose tooth and baby Ryder had his first half birthday!

 It is getting harder each month to get him to hold still long enough to take a photo!

Mommies on a Mission: Week 7

<center> <a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center>   I apologize for being so behind on updating! Both of my girls started fulltime school and it has been a huge adjustment! You think I would have more time to blog but it just isn't so. I have been doing good as far as not eating out and cooking at home. We did order out from Chili's once and my husband and I both got sick from eating such rich food! I definitely notice a huge difference in the way I feel when I eat healthier. I also signed up for an organic produce delivery program. So we receive a box of organic locally grown produce every 3 weeks. It has been fun to experiment with produce I normally wouldn't cook with or eat. I haven't done any formal exercising yet but I have been trying to walk more and just be more active in general. So here is what this week looks like:   Prepregnancy weight: 121 End of pregnancy weight: 180 3 weeks ago weight: 127 Today's weight: 124     Don't forget to check on Mama Lake's progress!

Mommies on a Mission: Week 4

<center> <a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center> I can't believe it is week 4 already! I have finally made some progress. I lost 3 pounds this week and can finally button my pre-pregnancy jeans! I swear, I owe it all to the Special K. I haven't yet found (made) the time to exercise so I still have the pregnancy belly pouch that won't go anywhere until I get my butt off the couch! I think I need something to motivate me this week. Maybe a trip to a local beach, pool, or lake as a reward...somewhere that means a bikini. I am really excited about my progress but I really want to start exercising for so many reasons, not just to lose the last of the weight. If you are following along each week, how are you doing with your progress? Any advice for motivation?   Pregnancy weight: 180 Pre-pregnancy weight: 121  Last weeks weight: 130 Today's weight: 127   Please venture over to Life as a Lake to check on Mama Lake's progress this week!

Mommies on a mission: Week 3

<center> <a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center>


I had a feeling I wouldn't make much progress this week and I was right. I have been making better food choices but I haven't fit in any exercise yet. The problem is that I am still nursing the baby a lot, (he is 19 lbs now!) and I am always hungry! I have started eating special k for breakfast each morning and I know once I start working out, I will see a difference.
My oldest starts school next week so I am hoping that once we get into a routine I can schedule some exercise in somewhere!
Weeks postpartum: 22
Pregnancy weight: 180
Last weeks weight: 130
This weeks weight: 130
GOAL: 120

Be sure to check out Life as a Lake to see Mama Lake's progress and if you are interested in joining in the weight loss challenge, send me an email.

Wish me luck this week!

Wordless Wednesday

Mommies on a Mission: Week 2

Week 1 was pretty much a fail! We decided to go camping last weekend so between the tri-tip, bread and artichoke dip, guacamole, beer and smores, I definitely didn't start my diet! The only exercise I got was walking up and down the hills between the pool and our campsite. The good news is I didn't gain any weight. I am headed out of town again this weekend to see family and my goal is to pack healthy snacks and not overindulge. Oh, and Special K is on sale at my local store so I plan to stock up!
Here is the lowdown:

Pregnancy weight: 180 (EEK! I know...)
Pre-pregnancy weight: 121
Current weight: 130
Goal weight: 120

Check in next week to see if I make any progress!

Second Anniversary

Yesterday was our second wedding anniversary. Since we hadn't been out since before baby boy was born, I thought it was about time for a date night. I called him in the morning and asked him to be home by 5, ready by 5:30 and to wear something nice because we were heading downtown. In the five years we have lived here, we have probably been downtown less than a handful of times so I know he was very curious.

We dropped off the kids at their awesome babysitters house then headed downtown. When we got there and walked in, I said to hubby, "Look, there's Hans!" Hans is the extremely talented musician who played at our wedding. Check out Hans' music here.When I found out he was playing on our anniversary, I knew we had to go! Hubby was super surprised and we had an amazing time.

Here we are two years later:

Mommies on a Mission: Week 1

<center><a href="http://lifeasalake.blogspot.com/2012/07/mommies-on-mission-week-1.html"><img src="http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z7/Abbeylake07/weight-loss_after-baby1.jpg" /></a></center>

Ok I admit, knowing I was going to start a weightloss challenge today did not encourage me to eat well and get a head start. In fact I did the opposite. I stopped thinking about what I was eating and rationalized that I would be starving soon enough! All kidding aside, I weighed myself this morning and was pleasantly surprised to see I had dropped 5 more pounds. I was confused as to how that could have happened but while telling my mom about it, it dawned on me that over the past month or so, I have made some changes to my diet. I stopped eating fast food and dining out, I was making all of our food including most snacks, from scratch, and my family was eating alot more fresh fruits and vegetables. I hadn't thought of it before as helping me to lose weight. I just wanted to save money and be healthy.

So here is the rundown:

Goal: I have 9 pounds to lose to get to pre-pregnancy weight. I am realistic with this goal because I am a nursing mommy and my son needs me to be a little chunky!

Plan: My plan to reach my goal is something that has worked for me in the past. Most days I will be eating special k cereal for breakfast. Lunch will be an Arbonne protein shake with either 2% milk or almond milk and almond or peanut butter. Dinner will be a balanced meal. Lots of water, fruits and veggies for snacks! For exercise I will be attempting to do Jillian Michaels dvd "Ripped in 30" 3-5 times a week.

Here is my before, please excuse the picture quality!:

For those of you who want to link up your blogs so we can read your progress here's how:

Post Partum Weight Loss

I am excited to announce that my friend who writes over at Life as a Lake and I, are going to team up for a weekly after-baby weight loss blog. We will be writing every Thursday about trying to shed the baby weight. I have been wanting to lose the last of the weight for awhile so hopefully having to update everyone on my progress each week will help!

If you are interested in joining in on our challenge and weekly updates let me know! Be sure to check back next week for the start of our challenge!

Crunchy AND Crafty...Oh My!

I have recently started looking for an amber necklace for baby boy. A few friends have little ones who wear them and supposedly they are great for teething. While I was looking online for one, I came across lots of mommy necklaces. There are a lot of different styles out there. Some are actually made for teething babies like the ones found on chewbeads. Others are just designed to catch baby's attention while he or she is nursing. You know that age when little nursling's start to get distracted and want to look around, pull mommy's hair or pinch your arm fat? My little guy just got there. I found a few cute designs I liked and decided I would try and make my own! Well I am not crafty in the least but I really wanted one of these necklaces. So off we went to the craft store, where beading supplies were 50% off this week.

Here is what I started with:

Super basic but this is the style I was going for. Plus, I am a beginner and I wasn't ready for a crazy challenge.

Here is the finished project:                                                                                                                

Like i said, totally basic but I love it! I even have enough supplies left over to make a few for friends. The best part? I spent $2.68!

What to do when it's crazy hot outside...

This week it has been stupid hot where I live. I know it could be hotter, but with an infant who sweats like a grown man, we haven't been venturing out unless we must. So what do we do when we are stuck inside? Apparently the same thing we do on cold rainy days. We cook and bake.

On Sunday we made microwave chocolate-peanut-butter-oat-snack-bars. The recipe only makes about 3 bars but its perfect for a quick snack.  

On Monday the girls and I made Baked oatmeal casserole. This is the second time I made this. The first time was to bring to a new mama. It is addicting!

Today we only left the house to get our free slurpees from 7/11! Oh, and we played at a friends for a bit. As if slurpees weren't enough, a few hours later I threw some frozen bananas, hershey's syrup, peanut butter and milk in a blender to make "milkshakes."

Thank goodness for instant netflix because it seems like all we have done this week is watch Hannah Montana and eat! Judge me if you want, but it is H.O.T. and I want to enjoy my children as much as I can before school starts again.

Disappointment and New beginnings

I miss blogging! I took a little break while we moved and got settled in our new house.

Over the past month I have been actively searching for a job, turning in resumes and even going on an interview. Last week, an interview I was scheduled to go on was canceled because they filled the position. I was so disappointed because I felt like this job would be perfect for our family.  It took me a day or so to find the bright side. I realized that I hadn't worked since a month before my baby boy was born. I have been so blessed to be home with my three babies for the past five months. I have gotten crazy good at budgeting and finding cheap or free things to do with the kids. Most of all, it has forced me to come up with creative ways to make money. I have so many ideas floating around in my head and I can't wait to put some in action!

This time has also allowed me to find what I am really passionate about. I love pregnancy and birth. I have always been fascinated with it, even when I was a teenager. Now that I am a mama and I have experienced three very different births, I have a huge respect for the birthing process. A friend of mine recently gave birth at home using the same midwives I delivered baby boy with. She also used a professional photographer to capture her labor and birth. Something clicked for me when I looked at the pictures from her birth.

I have to be involved with birth somehow.

Like I said, this isn't exactly something new to me. Anyone who knows me at all knows I have always wanted to work with pregnant and/or parenting teenagers. It's why I got my B.A. Now I want to take it a step further. My dream is to become certified as a childbirth educator and a birth doula. I watched a documentary today called "Pregnant In America." That sealed the deal!