The highlight of my day: Stroller Skating! In an attempt to branch out and stretch my eensy-weensy comfort zone I accepted a group invitation to go roller skating with Abigail in her stroller! Woohoo! I’m not going lie and say it was easy, because it has been years and years since I’ve skated, but it was so much fun! I got a pretty good workout in – my legs were quick to let me know that we were using new muscles, here – despite missing Baby Boot Camp this morning. Abigail didn’t seem to care, though. She just sat back in the stroller, chillin’ with the paci while I pushed her around the rink. Maybe if we’d been ice skating? lol
Anyway, the day will only get better, because tonight…Iron Man 3 at the Studio Movie Grill! Ricardo had me book Abigail for Adventure Kids, and Wednesdays are endless pizza nights at the theater. BAM! Could life get any better? (Answer: no, no it could not.)
Now, I just have to see if I can convince some other moms to be adventerous and come STroller skating with me some other time!
Short, but sweet. I shall blog again!

Wow! Today was just such a lazy day for me. I went nowhere. I didn’t even go out to check the mail. I slept late, partly thanks to the baby and partly thanks to my husband. So, tonight I am making my copycat recipe for the Zuppa Toscana from Olive Garden. I <3 that soup. A LOT. I was pretty excited when I found a copycat recipe online and I got to the point where I can make it without the recipe. I’ve even changed a few things so that it tastes more like I want. (For example, I always use more chicken broth. I like my soup soupier.) Fortunately, it’s a recipe the husband likes so I can make it pretty much whenever I want AND it’s not too bad on the healthy-food scale thanks to the potatoes and kale. (The basic ingredients are Italian sausage, russet potatoes, chicken broth, cream, and kale – with some red pepper flakes in there just for kicks.)

If you’re asking ‘wtf is kale’? then you’re like me…and not a self-proclaimed “foodie” or “gourmand” up on the latest food trends…so I’ll tell you. Kale is basically just one of those crazy green, leafy plants you find all over the supermarket. It looks a little like the love child of parsley and romaine lettuce. It’s not the best taste in the world on its lonesome, but it’s like a super-garnish for soup. Some enterprising people can turn it into kale chips by baking it tossed in olive oil and salt. All I got was crispy-burnt kale with salt. However, in this soup it soaks up a lot of flavor from the broth and Italian sausage and if you add it right before it’s done then it doesn’t get super-soggy and adds texture to the soup. Apparently it is being used more and more often, which I only know because now I can find it in WalMart.

Anyway – special dinner since I got to do nothing all day.

However…it hasn’t exactly been stress-free today. Abigail is on this kick where she’s gotten suuuuuper clingy, but mostly it’s just cute so we’re making adjustments. It’s like a game of human paddleball, though. She goes to play with toys…she comes back and tries to climb into my lap….she goes to play with toys…she comes back and…well you get the idea. She just wants to rubberband back and forth like that all day, and if I want to go to the kitchen for a drink or something (where she can’t follow me) it’s stand at the baby gate and cry. Not teary-eyed crying, but like you imagine Valkyries cry on their way into a battle. It’s both annoying and vaguely frightening.

The real bonus, though, is that my husband got me a Nook HD+ for Mother’s Day/ my birthday so I’ve been able to take some time today to play around with it. It’s basically just a 9″ Android tablet….so not only is it like reading a backlit hardcover book, but it has apps. I’m currently trying to set up recipes on Evernote so I can prop it up in the kitchen to cook. Which means I can also have a mobile recipe book in my hands when I go to the store. I’m not lyin’, though…I’ve spent a lot of time playing Fruit Ninja, too. I am constitutionally incapable of being all business and my poor tablet is already starting to reflect that. Check emails? Sure. Also, slice up virtual fruit. Apps to pay bills? Awesome! Also, there’s Facebook. Track recipes and grocery lists? Handy. Aaaaaand it’s a Nook so I’ve been transferring books over willy-nilly.

Speaking of books…I’ve realized I have a very small collection of ebooks. Now, I love real, physical books and that can’t be beat, but I’ve realized that some of the stuff I read (*ahem* romance novels *cough cough*) might not be things I want just lying around on the shelves for the kiddo to pick up later on. So I’m trying to go digital. Bookcases cannot be password protected, after all.

Anyhoodles, since I’ve been granted free time, I think I’m going to finish dinner and enjoy an evening with my husband.

Abigail and I met a group of friends at the Dallas Arboretum today. Fortunately for us, we have a family membership so getting in was free(ish). One of the things I love about that place is that you can bring in your own food and drinks. Can you say picnic? Yeah. Surrounded by lovely, lovely flowers and trees and grass that you could sleep in if only it weren’t so damp!

I always enjoy the chance to get together with other moms and babies because really, there are times when no matter what, only talking to another mom will ensure you’re talking to someone who will get it. I imagined pretty well what being a full-time mom would be like (yay, me!) but it is still sometimes overwhelming, or absolutely hilarious, or breathtaking in ways that I never would have expected. Other moms get this. Not veteran moms that have twelve year olds, and not grandmas, but women whose children were born around the same time as yours. There’s a bond there. Other moms with older kids are great resources, but they are moms that have been  there and sometimes you just really need a mom who is there, right now, in the same stinky, poopy, drooly, guilt-ridden-and-yet-somehow-hilarious situation that you are in at the moment.

As an example, a friend of mine didn’t catch her daughter when she fell the other day and she felt terrible. She told me about it and I was like “Oh been there, done that…so many times. It’s okay.” I could tell her with complete honesty that things like that just happen. They just do. Babies are the most fearless, clueless, curious creatures…and believe me when I say that if your baby isn’t somehow trying to self-inflict brain damage then something is probably wrong. My kid likes to hang upside down, for example. Why? Who knows. Blood rush to the head? Different perspective? The joy of making mommy carry you around like a sack of potatoes and garner strange looks in public? Divine!

And after a point you will do anything to make your kid happy. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a baby-slave, but if some harmless activity is going to make her happy then I’m all over it. Make farting noises with my tongue and chase her around the living room? Check. Hang her upside down? Check.  Sit her on my stomach while I do crunches? Ouch…but check. Baby smiles are the best and believe me, after changing poopy diapers, sleep deprivation, and fussy feedings I think any mom gets to the point where they need those smiles just to stay sane. So will I be a completely dopey crackpot in public? You bet your pants I will.

The arboretum, then – like so many other outings – was a way of Keeping Baby Happy. That’s like, mission #2 of my life right now. (Mission #1 is not squishing her like a bug.) The chance to sit around and talk with other moms and relax for a while was just a big, awesome bonus. I also managed to get a few pictures so, rambling post behind us, enjoy the photos.

My life has been filled with the exciting challenge of being a full-time mom and quite frankly, it’s a hell of a busy job. Blogging? Pffft. Not high on my list of priorities and as I once read you’re doing just fine as a mom if you make it to the end of the day without burning the house down and everyone is still alive. A+ for me, then.

I am compelled to blog tonight, though, because this is an outlet I have long neglected and today I was forcibly reminded that a little self-care goes a long way in helping one deal with life. Stress – whether it’s “good” or “bad” stress – is still stress no matter what the source and it’s something that has to be tackled. I’m one of those coke-bottle types that keeps a lid on it until everything is so agitated I explode. (Usually, into tears, like I did earlier today.)

Thankfully, my husband stepped up to the plate and gave me what I needed: a stress free afternoon and evening. He went out with the baby and I had the house to myself for a while. He let me take a three-hour nap. I went to the bookstore and browsed. I ate fast food for dinner.

I knew I needed a break, but I didn’t realize how badly I needed it until I observed how much better I felt when I got it.

As a mom it’s easy to put others first. As a perfectionist mom with ADD it’s like a requirement. You are reading the blog of a girl who skipped right past the “Freshman 15″ in college simply because she would get distracted and forget to eat. Let me say that again: Forgot. To. Eat.

Give me a tiny person to take care of and I’m all over that. There are obvious examples of how this system works: the baby is freshly cleaned with diaper ointment, clean diaper, clean clothes, nails clipped, hair (what there is of it) brushed and drinking a bottle; I am wearing whatever passed the smell test this morning, I can’t remember if I brushed my hair, I’m pretty certain I didn’t brush my teeth going by the taste in my mouth, we’re on our way out the door and I haven’t eaten a thing. We get back home, baby gets another bottle, goes down for a nap with a fresh diaper, I change shirts and then I realize I’ve just sat down on the couch without getting the drink and snack I wanted. I give up and just stay on the couch. Yeah, I’m lazy – but it stems from being exhausted, underfed, stressed, and solely focused on the well being of only one person. (Hint: NOT ME.)

And I wonder why I’ve been feeling overwhelmed and depressed lately.

So I would advise people to take this is a cautionary tale. I feel like a completely new, improved version of myself now that I have taken the time to pay attention to me. It’s simple things, like having alone-time and browsing through the bookstore, that make the biggest difference in the day-to-day grind. I feel like I can wake up in the morning and be a better mother, better wife, and kinder human being because I won’t be starting off running on a deficit. Easy-peasy. All I had to do was allow myself to take a break instead of trying to super-woman my way through everything for the sake of “being strong” or being a “good mom.”

It turns out the world did not explode because I had time to myself and let my husband take care of the baby and worries for a day.

It’s been ages, so let’s see if this still works.

So, we’re not exactly following it to the letter lately because we’ve been insanely busy & stressed, but the husband and I are on Atkins. We did awesome on induction and each lost quite a bit of weight – but more than that we lost inches. Lately, I’m trying to still make lower-carb decisions on our food, but it’s so much easier right now to pick up fast food than throw together a complete meal that’s been planned down to the last gram of carbs and fiber. One of the things that made me happy is that now that we’re past induction I’ve found some Atkins-friendly baking recipes! I’ve always like cooking, but baking has always been the most fun. The recipes almost exclusively cut out flour as I know it, but I think the substitutions make for some interesting experiments, which is what I loved about baking anyway! So far I’ve made a decent pumpkin cheesecake, I’m trying out a recipe now for pecan sandies, and I’ve found a brown sugar splenda blend that means I can try out a pumpkin pie recipe for Thanksgiving!
I’m hoping that with some smart planning I can get us back on track with Atkins once we’ve made it past Thanksgiving day, but it means I’ll have to sit down soon and plan out what I need from the store and what amount of work I have the time to do in the evenings and for lunches. Induction limited a lot so it was easier, in a way, to have to work with just a few things that were okay. Now we’re past induction and I need to do a little more research and planning to figure out what things we can eat, what things I can add back into our diet, and how to re-vamp a few recipes that I like so that they are low-carb enough to fit into our diet.
The key thing I have to remember is that it works as long as we stick to it. My ability to stick to routines has always been pretty poor, but I can see the difference in my figure & my weight and I’ve noticed a difference in my appetite that coincides with the fact that cutting out carbs (which mostly come from sugar!) are healthier and help my body work more efficiently. More than anything, living a healthy lifestyle is the important part. I have a daughter I want to keep up with. I have a husband that counts on me, and I want to be able to do and go and keep up with life. Of course, it doesn’t hurt if regulating my weight & exercising will help me with my self-image.
So…I’m planning to start experimenting in the kitchen & keep on baking!

Well, lately we have been on the go almost every day of the week! Last week I went to the State Fair with a friend on Monday, had a pediatrician’s appointment on Tuesday, my mom’s group on Wednesday, a chiropractor’s appointment on Thursday…whew! And this week we had baby swim lessons Monday evening, Mommy & Me Yoga on Tuesday, an appointment for me on Wednesday, followed by the mom’s group again! Fortunately, little Abigail Beatrice has been a champ through it all. I even got my flu shot yesterday, for which I think I deserve major kudos because I’m pretty phobic about needles/shots. (I hide it pretty well now, but when I was a kid they had to hold me down for shots. For realz….)
Today, we’ve got the day at home together, but I’ve got a couple of errands to run today so it won’t be entirely uneventful. Also, I’m hoping to make it to a pumpkin patch soon so I can get pictures of Abigail with the pumpkins! With any luck, her Halloween costume ( Raggedy Ann!!!) will be in by Saturday and I can get her pictures in costume.
Sometime soon, we really are going to take a break!

So lately I’ve been all about making some changes. We moved Abigail’s swim class from Saturdays to Mondays (which has the advantage of making class at the same time as another family I know). I’ve also started cleaning like a crazy person. I’ve cleaned the kichen & dining room, but they’re a little messy now because I also emptied out the closet we were using for storage. So, some of the things from there are in the living room now waiting to be sorted through. I’ve also emptied and reorganize our bedroom closet…and so whew! I’ve been busy.
I’ve still got several little things I’d like to do to clean up around here, but it’s been good to feel like I’m getting things done.

Well, I dyed my hair and also cut myself some bangs and thankfully Abigail is not at all disconcerted by mommy’s new look. I was going to insert a picture that I also posted on Facebook, but apparently I can’t get it to work at the moment…so just imagine this: I have new hair. :p

So…I’ve gone back and forth since my teens dyeing my hair, growing it out, dyeing it again…and to be honest I’m still not happy with my natural color. I was blond when I was a kid, and I miss it! My hair is still sort of light, but it’s brown. BROWN. Can you think of any other color that says “blah” like certain shades of brown? I can’t. I see some girls with brown hair that works. It has that deep, rich color, or looks more auburn. But not mine. Oh, no. It looks like someone cleaned a floor with my hair. At least, that’s how I feel sometimes. Boo.

But now I have to wonder…will it freak out my baby if my hair suddenly changes colors right when she’s starting to learn all my features? She doesn’t seems phased when I come out of the shower with a towel on my head, but maybe she gets that my hair couldn’t possibly be blue. Also, if I do dye my hair then how do I explain to my own daughter when she’s older that she is – and will continue to be – beautiful just the way she is? I mean, that sounds hypocritical if I can’t even leave my hair alone (and let’s not get into cosmetics! Ah!!!) so can I really convince her that I’m right when my roots are peeking out?

I would like to feel good about my looks, and while I know she thinks I’m beautiful, and since my husband tells me he thinks I’m beautiful, you’d think that would be enough. However, I can see the toll pregnancy took on my figure. I haven’t had a nice haircut, or a manicure, or any of those girly things since I got pregnant (minus a trim because my hair was so tangled at the ends) and while I don’t normally care too much about that kind of thing….lately I feel frumpy. I wear the same two pairs of jeans and same few tops over and over again because I’m still packing an extra 15 pounds. Mostly, I don’t mind since the trade-off is I got a baby!

But wouldn’t it be nice, I think, to feel a little pampered? Wouldn’t it be nice to look in the mirror and see something I like? Hmmm. Of course you could argue that I should just learn to like how I look as I am, but I think any woman who has even given birth knows what I’m talking about. One of the easiest things to change is my hair. It makes a big difference in how a person looks, but without the expense and scary hack-up-your-face elements of surgery or the cakey clog-your-pores look of makeup. (And really, who has the time for makeup, anyway?)

It’s a puzzlement.