Being a mom is pretty hard. On a variety of different levels. To actually have carried the child is pretty traumatizing to your body. Just think about it. You have somewhat of a good figure when you get pregnant, then your uterus and everything in its way blows up to the size of a fricking watermelon... A WATERMELON!!!! Then all of a sudden the watermelon is a removed and you are supposed to be normal looking again. Ever blow up a balloon.... keep it blown up for 9 months, then let the air out??? Chances are, that little balloon will not be the same small shape.
I've had three watermelons in my uterus and it definitely is not the same. I'm traumatized. It's traumatized. When I got pregnant the first time, I really didn't know what I was doing. I gained about SIXTY pounds. Yep, that's right. 6 - 0 - pounds. I weighed more than my husband who is 6 foot 4 inches. I blame it on the two trips downstairs to the cafe in the building in which I worked. I would stop for breakfast, then get to work and be hungry again. Twice. And the sciatica prevented me from working out. Yep, I'm going to blame it on that. Took me a while but I finally took off the weight and then some but it took a lot of hard work and the help of a small village (aka weight watchers) and throwing out all bad food in the house. It helped that my husband is a health nut and would blow an air horn every time I put a carb in my mouth. He was pretty supportive but I'm sure he got annoyed with me. I'm like the person who asks someone else to wake them up at a certain time... then that time comes and they come in to wake you up and you scream at them because you don't want to be woken up. I told my husband, PLEASE HELP ME DO THIS, I HAVE SIZE 4 JEANS I WANT TO WEAR. Then when time came and I was eating something bad, he would "gently remind me" and I would bite his head off and scream and he would throw his arms up in confusion. I'm a very angry person when I don't have carbs.
Being a mom on the go is pretty hard, especially when my kids have all this yummy food and I so want to finish what's on their plate. Ever go out to dinner and order a kids meal and you as the mom end up finishing the meal??? Yep that is me. I think the last straw for me after we had our first kid was I went to a party and the person I was talking to said something about a woman across the room. They mentioned that they didn't know she was pregnant and how excited they were for her. I knew for a 100% fact that SHE WAS NOT PREGNANT but that was definitely a maternity top because I had the same one. I prayed and prayed that this person did not go up and say something to her. I didn't want to be that person. The person who 10 months after the baby is born is still in her maternity clothes.
After the second child, I decided to resort to weight watchers. That for me was pretty easy and I made my goal within about 5 weeks. I loved it because you could add "activity points" and get to "earn food back". I was the youngest and most active person there by far. I think they looked at me a little weird when on my chart converting activity to food I put "14 mile run" and they didn't even know how many points to give me back. I'm pretty sure no one had ever run that far and asked that question. I do thank them for helping me. Another challenge was between my second and third child, we were actually pregnant for third time. I made it to second trimester when I found out that we had lost the baby. I had already gone into my maternity clothes and gained about 10 pounds because not only did I gain weight from the baby but it was also a Christmas holiday which I blame on the vast amount of food we consumed down in Florida. Getting home and being in stretchy pants was nice, but when we miscarried, I felt horrible that I had added some pounds and now didn't have any reason for it. I worked harder then ever. Emotionally it was upsetting because the weight reminded me of the loss, but over time, I stopped eating my kids Chicken McNuggets and my body and my mind healed.
I've decided now that since I'm 6 months post baby with my last child, our third and wonderful gift from God, that I'm not as excited about getting back into those size 4 pants as I once was. I guess I'll never have another excuse to not fit into them. I have no more maternity clothes in the house so I pretty much live in workout clothes because after all, they are stretchy. I have a goal of getting back into my size 4s in the next few months but right now I'm enjoying my light beer sitting on the back porch watching my children play in the backyard. I'm not that far off my goal, and I know it will come. But I'm really in no hurry. At least not this week. I've gotten back into the workout routine once I picked my uterus off the floor and healed my broken foot, so I guess I just need to get my kids back into school to focus on getting back to myself. As a mom, the hardest thing to do for me is to keep up with things that I NEED to do..... like workout, run, read books and find time for me. Not Mommy, but ME.
Kindergarten starts in two weeks. My oldest is going off to "real school". Going on a bus. I'm kind of sad and kind of happy. I'm happy for her to start this new adventure. At our elementary school, they have this event on the first day of school called "Boo Hoo Yahoo". It's for a social for parents after they drop their kids off at school or have their kids jump on the bus. They can't either come and cry "boo hoo" that their child is going to school and all grown up or they can cry "yahoo" that they are super excited that their kids are going to school and they will have no more kids at home. I guess I will be doing both this year. I'm not too sad since I have two other kids still at home but I'm a little sad that my little one is old enough to go on this adventure by herself. I know she will do well. She makes friends very easily and I know that this is the first step that she has to do on her own.
I'm writing this I guess because I'm day 3 of my new workout program and healthy eating kick. A friend recently posted on how she is going "carb free" and I am attempting to do this. The only carb I have had today is this beer and so far I feel great. I have been doing TURBO FIRE workouts and P90X with my husband. I can't wait to see the results.
As for now, I'm enjoying my kids and trying to find time for ME, not for mommy. Mommy has plenty of time during the day.
Happy Baby Thoughts:)
R
