Running

I have started running. I have always hated running...but now it feels like I must.

Our baby is now 2 months old and for the past 4 weeks I have not lost one pound. I am nursing, which is supposed to facilitate weight loss (that is a bunch of baloney if you ask me). I am readying myself to teach Zumba again, but...There are 30 pounds here that I am not accustomed to!!

I have always been a "smallish" person and even after having my first two kids I eventually got back to a weight I could live with...but I don't want it to take a year and a half this time!!!

Getting dressed in the morning was getting pretty depressing so I bought a few things in a size large and XL....first time for that one.

So, I have made it my goal to become a runner. Here in Iowa you will see people running for exercise no matter the weather....that long lean danceresque body.....it will be mine again I tell you! I have joined the ranks of those who have survived natural childbirth so I should be able to accomplish anything right?

I started just walking for 30 minutes every week day to warn my body what was coming. I was even sore after that for the first weeks. What had childbirth done to me?! To top it all off, during pregnancy I developed plantar faciitis (probably because I was so much heavier than I am used to)...ouchie After walking for 3 weeks I went to Runnersworld.com and started reading. They say it is important that I eat enough calories so I continue to make milk for my baby....no crash diets allowed...darn it. I have however, started eating a lot more fruits and veggies. I just want to feel healthy, not win a beauty pageant.....although :0)

Running is hard. For someone who has never done it regularly, it is super hard. I take that back...running for one minute and walking for two minutes every other day was pretty doable....then the training schedule I have taped to my bathroom mirror said to run 3 minutes and walk for one minute...what happened to 2...they skipped 2! I did it yesterday, or rather I tried. The first three minute interval I purposely did downhill so as not to psyche myself out. By the time I got to interval #4 I was pretty pathetic. I pushed through, glancing at my watch way too often and was shaking like a leaf when I got home.

Runners...is this normal? I was in pretty good shape when I got preggo. I was even teaching Zumba classes until about 20 weeks. Why the heck is this so hard? I am determined...I will keep going and my size 4/6 jeans will no longer run in fear from me when I open my closet. I will NOT wear "mom-jeans"...ever.

So if you see me in my ill-fitting exercise attire and custom made orthotics "running" down 2nd street....please try not to laugh. I am going to be a runner.

Finally alive

This past month has been remarkable. I gave birth to our 3rd child...natural childbirth. The recovery and ensuing adjustments have been intense. Let me address these items one at a time

LACK OF SLEEP:

This makes normal people turn into crazy, grumpy, self doubting monsters. Waking up every hour or two as our baby's sole source of food has been harder this time around. It made me wonder if we could really ever do this again...have another baby. It made me wonder if I am any good at parenthood anyway.

LACK OF TIME:

Our first baby got my undivided attention. There was no one else to care for once hubby went to work. I could sleep when she slept because no one needed to be picked up at school, or fed lunch, or generally be paid attention to. This time two of the sweetest kids on the planet need me, even when baby is finally asleep. I feel neglectful. I want to spend more time having fun with them...let's face it...big kids are more fun than diapers and spit up. That is not to mention the fact that I have to neglect myself.

PHYSICAL RECOVERY:

Having a baby does a number on the human body. Bones actually move. Blood volume changes drastically. Hormones are off the charts. Fatigue...oh so tired. I knew I wouldn't look perfect after giving birth, but I feel ridiculous. Wearing maternity clothes when you aren't pregnant is depressing. I am normally a smallish person. I exercised regularly before baby, and right now I get sore muscles from walking...walking! I dread getting dressed in the morning. Nursing this time around started out very rocky. I was in soooooo much pain for the first 4 weeks. I never had this kind of pain with the other two. It has slowly gotten better, but I thought I was doomed to major pain 10-12 times a day for the next 15 months. Thank heavens it improved.

EMOTIONAL:

I have understandably been all over the place emotionally. I wouldn't want to be married to me this last month. I have felt like I give everything I have and my hubby and kiddos still need more. Oh, and my house is a mess. I wish I was like my friends who only gain 25 pounds when pregnant and lose it all within a month. They start jogging when baby is 2 weeks old like it is the most normal thing ever. I feel like I got run over and I still have 30 pounds to get back to normal.

HOPE:

This week I have pumped a bottle of milk every day so hubby can feed baby once during the night and I can sleep a little longer. The miracle is that baby took the bottle without a problem...our other babies hated the bottle with a passion. I have been taking baby to the mall every morning so I can walk for exercise. Some days she does better than others, and I am feeling a little stronger. Today was warm enough to walk outside and I felt amazing! It has been my goal to become a runner...and actually enjoy it, and I feel like I really can do it. I will walk for one more week and then officially start my running program. I need a jogging stroller....anyone (in Iowa) have one they are not using? I also tried doing a few of my Zumba songs the other day and it was fun...I will be ready to teach again soon. It is all worth it, and my sweet family

is the best thing ever....I will survive....wish me luck.

Labor and delivery, just the way I wanted.

Savvy is here! This is how it all happened...

On the day of my 38 week appointment I had an NST (non-stress-test) and an ultrasound to check amniotic fluid levels...kind of sounds like I'm talking about maintenance on a vehicle :0)
Everything looked pretty good, but the doc wanted to check again in a couple of days. On Friday I was checked again and the fluid levels had gone down to a level doc didn't like...too low. So I was sent to Labor and Delivery for a few hours to have baby monitored.
She looked pretty good, but was having some variables in her heart rate because of the low fluid. Doc suggested we strip my membranes (for those who know what that means...for those who don't...you can look it up :0) ) to get things started a little more naturally...otherwise, we felt induction might be best for baby.
I super didn't want to be induced because I wanted a no medication labor. When you are induced with meds the labor can be way more intense. So we did the membrane strip and I went home to wait.
We had a fun family movie night planned. The kids had been making movie tickets and setting up a concession stand etc. for the last week. Their prayers had been sounding something like this..."please don't let the baby come before the movie night...wait until after...amen". The movie night was great...gotta love Indiana Jones. After it was over, I fell asleep for about 30 minutes. At about 11 pm I woke up. I just couldn't sleep. I was told that using a breast pump could help get contractions going so I gave that a try for about 10 minutes...worked like a charm! I started having contractions every 4 minutes.
I started packing some clothes for the kids, and stuff they would need while they were at our friends house...I just knew this was it. I turned on the T.V. for a little distraction...watched "Star Trek the Next Generation". The contractions were starting to get a little more intense so I decided to take a warm shower to relax...felt great. I planned on staying in there until the hot water was gone, but then I started thinking..."what if I labor really fast and have this baby in the shower? I should wake up hubby." So I got out and went to wake him up. I don't think he was convinced that this was really it at first, but I knew it was.
He took a quick shower and I breathed through a few contractions. I was still going strong and had to concentrate through each one. I felt a little nausea so I was sitting on the bathroom floor. After a few minutes of that I felt my water break! I told hubby and he said "ok. we better go now!" He woke up the kids. Pooka-shell was excited...Bubba-do was just cranky. Hubby was awesome. He got all the bags in the car and remembered a towel for me to sit on so I didn't soak the seat. :0) We headed to our friends to drop off the kids. They were so wonderful to take them for us
As we headed to the hospital the contractions were intense, but I was totally concentrating through each one...visualizing everything gently opening. I wasn't making a sound. Hubby had to ask if I was still having contractions. I was in the zone!
When we got to the hospital I changed into a gown because my p.j.'s were soaked. The contractions were so intense, but I had a minute to breathe and relax between each one. The most comfy position was sitting on the floor (on a clean towel of course) I had hubby rub my lower back. I thought maybe baby was face up, but she wasn't... my muscles were just super fatigued.
There were a couple of moments when I considered asking for pain meds, but as long as I really focused during every contraction I could make it. Finally I was able to stand up. Hubby wanted them to check my cervix to see how dilated I was, but I was like "no-way" When I had bubba-do and they checked me I was sure I was going to be almost there, and I was only 5cm. It discouraged me so much I just had the epidural. Plus, I didn't want to break my concentration. I knew my body would know what to do and when. I leaned on hubby's chest and squeezed his fingers. By about 3 am I started feeling a little urge to push. Pretty soon doc was there and one of the intern residents. I told them I couldn't change positions so I just stayed standing!
The urge to push just came. I didn't have to be told when or how, I just did it. The pushing part felt much better than the dilating part! I could really feel baby moving down. By 4:03 am Savvy was born! We did it!!! Labor was thankfully only 4 hours long start to finish. I only had to push for 10 minutes.
She did well, cried pretty quickly. What a relief to have her here. After the birth I lost a little more blood than they would like, so they worked to get the placenta out quickly...uncomfortable!
When I held Savvy I cried. I had waited so long, we all had. It was beautiful. She is beautiful! 6 pounds 6 ounces and 20 inches long with plenty of dark hair Yay! So cute. I felt like Wonder Woman.
When sitting on the edge of the bed later, preparing to get into the wheelchair to move to another room...I got dizzy. I told the nurse my ears were ringing. The next thing I knew, I was waking up on the floor with hubby trying to help me up. I had no idea what had happened. I had passed out and hubby jumped over the wheelchair (Superman style ) to catch me before my face hit the floor. The funny thing is..I felt so much better. I was exhausted and as soon as I passed out I immediately started to dream...instant REM sleep. I was actually slightly annoyed that I was being waked...until I realized I was on the floor! Haa aaa so crazy!
This is the labor I was hoping for. The kids prayers were answered..the timing was perfect. I was worried it would happen at a time when the kids were on their way home from school or that my water would break in an embarrassing situation...or a hundred other things would happen. I am recovering. We are all trying to get used to all the changes. We are so grateful to everyone who helped us through this and are still helping.
And that is the story of the doctor's wife who had a baby.....

Savvy's nursery is finished...finally

Savvy's room is finished. I have had these images in my mind for over nine months. Now they are finally tangible. I feel so relieved to be ready..now we just need the baby to come. 2 more weeks. This is the blanket I crocheted for her. The theme of the nursery is Giraffes. It took a long while but I am really happy with how it turned out.

Here is her bedroom door...welcome sign and all.

I had no luck finding changing pad covers in the color I wanted so I made a couple of these out of towels!

I have decorated a lamp for each of my kiddos....here is my take on giraffes

I found this pic at goodwill of all places...and I fell in love with it.

I also have painted name letters for each of the kids rooms. I love these ribbons.

These car seat canopies are so smart and popular now...I designed and made this too. :0)

The outside of the canopy/car seat cover. So much better than a blanket that always slips off right?

I nice shelf I installed...another awesome bargain find.

Her pretty little dresser/changing table...Yay...it is perfect!

Full room view. The curtains are also made by me with fabric I found at good will...I know, I am an awesome bargain hunter. :0)

The blankie is ready...

See you soon Savvy!

Pooka Shell turned 7!

Partee-Zone Friends

Her special cake

Brother is proud of the present he got her...a video game :0) Look at those pretty earrings!

She was very brave.

So grown up.

Happy 7th birthday!

I can't be old enough to have a child turning 7 years old...Nevertheless, the calendar says I am. Our sweet pooka-shell had a simple birthday party with a few girlfriends. We took them to an indoor "Partee-zone" place and then back home for cake and presents. I wish I had the energy and that we had the resources to make a bigger deal of her birthday...turning 7 is momentous. But, she did get the one thing she wanted most...her ears pierced. She asked me every day leading up to it if it was going to hurt and for how long. She was so brave. Thankfully they did both ears at the same time. She looks adorable. And little brother gave her something they can both enjoy...lego Indiana Jones! I love you Pooka. You have taught me so much these last 7 years. You are an amazing little girl and a fabulous person with so much potential...you amaze me.

Blizzard of 2011

View from our front window One of the medium sized drifts..on the back deck

You can really see the depth here..thank you to our sweet neighbor for helping!

View from the front door.

Back deck

So this storm was pretty impressive. The winds blew strong for the entire night and into the next day...making drifts many feet deep. Our lovely neighbor helped us out with his snowblower and we stayed inside for a few days not going anywhere...the kids even got a school free snow day out of it. Gotta love the Midwest.

Even grateful people have crappy days

Warning: This is a vent...I am going to relate all the dumb things that ticked me off today. I can blame it on pregnancy hormones and the fact that at 36 weeks I am now in almost constant discomfort/pain....that doesn't help ones patience levels. I am very very grateful for the reason behind my pain and hormones...nevertheless

It started this morning. I was brushing my teeth. When I am preggo I have a very sensitive gag reflex so I am careful usually. For some reason I could not handle it today! I could not stop gaging/heaving for about 5 minutes straight...sheesh. I don't even get morning sickness really so this was weird.

I got all dressed and felt I looked pretty cute. Found clothing that was comfy enough and actually fit (no small task) I put this cute cute flower in my hair that I just got and got the kids to school. I was all set to head to the mall and use a couple of gift cards to get some things for the baby...did the store I need open at 9...noooooo, how about 10...nope. The lady was in there taking her sweet time getting ready to open. So I took a walk around the mall (also no small task, as my pelvic bones feel like they are going to crack apart at any time) That is when I noticed the flower in my hair was gone. I re-traced my steps waddling all the way...no luck. The store finally opened about 10:15 and I found something cute, but by now I am totally exhausted. Being in pain for extended periods is tiring!

Oh yeah, and I couldn't get to sleep last night...I love to sleep. I am always up for a good nap...I never have insomnia. What the heck?!

I hoped I would find the flower in my car or at home...no luck. I am so ticked I lost that! Gah! Now I was planning on taking a nap after picking up bubba-do from preschool. He is allowed to play video games every other day so that would have been a good time. Did I get to? Nooooo. As I am turning on the tv/game system for him I realize the universal remote needs new batteries. I am all the way down stairs already and the batteries are upstairs. I send the 4 year old to find them and after 10 minutes I realize I will have to do it myself. He is holding the package of them in his hands!!! Don't ask me why he didn't just bring them to me like I asked. Oh yeah, and the cat peed on the floor just outside the litter box... Why????? Coming up the stairs was difficult enough, now I am all worked up and mad at the world.

I can't take a nap now... And my son informs me that the kitchen smells like dog poop so I figure I better do the dishes and take out the garbage. I seriously can't stand bad smells. I slammed things around and cleaned up the kitty mess. I felt only slightly better. The day isn't over. I have to drag my kids to my doctor's appointment and keep them occupied while the doc checks to see if I am dialated at all. Then all the books have to go back to the library (very heavy!!) Oh, and did I mention hubby is working nights so he is not able to be of any help with anything until the weekends? Great timing... a month of nights the final weeks before we have this baby.

And now I'm hungry.... how has your day been?