The Adventures of a Toddler

Leah has been loving to play outside lately (who can blame her, the weather here is gorgeous!). She'll stand at the door and say "ah-sigh" louder and louder until someone lets her out. Once outside, she explores the grass and chases grasshoppers. She likes the feeling of grass on her bare feet. She will run down the sidewalk to Ian's house shouting "Eeee-aaaaaa" (he's on vacation with his mom right now so we can't play with him). But her very latest thing is blowing bubbles. Now she really can't blow them herself yet unless it's on accident. But she loves to dip the bubble stick into the jar over and over. She also cheers herself on when it goes in (as evidenced by the photo).

Leah has been so much fun lately, a real little girl now. I put her in pigtails for the first time on Saturday. She looked so grown-up. I can't believe that just a few short years ago she didn't exist. I can't imagine life without her or with another baby! I know everyone says you always have more love to give, but I really don't understand how I will be able to feel about the next one the way I do about her. BUT I know it will happen, the same way it happened with Leah. That's the way life and love go.

A milestone in weight loss

I have hit the 10 lb mark! I have lost a grand total of 10.6 lbs. In just a few more pounds I will have lost 10% of my body weight. That is an exciting milestone for me and one I plan to reward just as soon as our darn house sells. We have no money to spend on things like massages and pedicures. But we will get there one day.

I just want everyone to know how awesome Leah is. She is so smart! She talks so much and remembers things. We have this book with a picture of chickens in a barn and they say cluck, cluck. I was reading her another book and there was a picture of a barn and she says cluck, cluck? She was looking for the chickens! I didn't even make the connection until we had read this new book a few times.

So is everyone ready for this? Ian is potty training! Laurie didn't even start it with him. He started sitting on the potty for fun, then decided to pee pee before bathtime. Then yesterday he pooped on the potty. So Laurie is going to experiment with putting him in underwear for a few hours a day. Our kids are getting soooo big!

Hottie Mama!

Tonight was lots of fun! We went out to dinner with the Maddexes at Red Lobster (Mike REALLY wanted the Endless Shrimp). I put on a pair of pants that I haven't worn in maybe 2 weeks, but used to wear all the time, and they were HUGE! I exaggerate a little but they were quite big, enough that I can't wear them anymore. SO I started trying on pants that I wore to work before I got pregnant with Leah and they fit perfectly! They are very slimming, the kind with no pockets or belt loops and the zipper on the hip. Usually when pants fit in the waist, they are tight over the hips and thighs. These pants were a perfect fit through the hips and thighs AND waist. That tells me that my rear has tightened and slimmed down.

For general public information, I ate (you guessed it) SNOW CRAB LEGS at Red Lobster. So I am living up to my Crabby Mama name. :)

After we ate, the boys took the kids home to bed and Laurie and I went shopping. First we stopped at a coffee place to get a yummy latte. I swear the guy behind the counter flirted with me! For the first time in a long time, I felt like an attractive woman, not just a Mommy in my yoga clothes. As silly as it sounds, it meant a lot to me. I felt like me again. Then we went on to have a successful shop in Michael's, purchasing lots of new cute scrapbooking things (I am really catching up on my pages now).

Sometimes I feel like something's missing...

I wish there was a way to work, but not be responsible for being at work or turning in anything. Sometimes I feel like my time is very empty. I wander around with Leah wondering if this is all there is. Then there are other days when she and I are busy and on the go all day. I love watching her try something new or say new words. I don't want to send her to daycare. AND I don't want to work full-time. But I also don't want to get some kind of random part time job. If I went back to work, I'd want to teach. I know people are probably thinking that substituting would be ideal, but it's not the same as getting to know your kids and planning the curriculum (a part I really enjoy). So I guess I will just try to make staying at home more like working at a preschool with a schedule and activities planned in advance. Maybe that will make it feel less like I am a bum.

On another note, I am now down 8 pounds and a pant size. I really like my exercise schedule and it's getting easier to eat well. I'm getting all ready to become pregnant again in a few months! :)

A realization about myself

Tonight I had pizza for the first time in a while. I had lots of points left for the day and I hadn't used any of my flex points (you get 35 extra per week) so I decided we could splurge on pizza. I ate 2 slices of Papa John's Veggie pizza. Now my old self would have eaten 3 slices, so the new me ate that amount, knowing I was still okay on points. BUT even before I began the third piece, I wasn't sure I wanted it. Afterwards, I felt gross and overly full. I think I have finally adjusted myself to eating the correct amount of food (portion size). I am finding now that at the end of a day, I actually have points LEFT that I have to eat before bed. (You have to eat all of your points so that your body doesn't go into "starvation mode" because you won't lose weight that way.) This was a major realization for me. I think I may be at a lifestyle changing turning point in "dieting."

On another note, starting Monday I am going to begin running every day. I plan to be able to run a full 30 minutes without walking in 6 weeks. At least that's what the article in Prevention's running magazine claims. :) Anyway, I am excited to get some cardio in. As of this past week, I am taking only Pilates and Yoga at the gym. The other classes are not at convenient times/days. The first full yoga class yesterday left me pretty sore.

Leah has not been sleeping well again lately. Last night she woke up crying every 2 hours all night. I would go stand outside her door, ready to go in and rock her, but she would finally fall asleep again. AND she was up for the day at 5am!!! It goes through cycles and we are on a downward sleep spiral right now. I need to start putting her down early again (like before 7pm), I think. My sleep book says always err on the side of they need MORE sleep to sleep better. So we will try that tomorrow.

Success!

I weighed in this morning and I lost another 1.6 lbs for a total of 7.4 lbs. I plan to buy a WW Mexican cookbook to try even more yummy recipes. So just wanted to give you a quick update.

I am nervous

This weekend Mike's parents came to visit. Two days out of the four I ate way more than my Target points for Weight Watchers. Now we get 35 extra points a week (flex points), but I ate even more than 35 extra! Mike and I were talking about it today. He asked if WW was a lifestyle change or a diet. I said it is supposed to be a lifestyle change, and it has been for the most part. I do eat better on a daily basis and am much more conscious of portion sizes and fat in certain foods. On the other hand, to order grilled chicken and steamed veggies at a nice restaurant is such a waste of money, especially for a person like me who loves food and new flavors. So again I am nervous about my weigh-in tomorrow. I just have to remember that life will go on and I can renew my commitment for next week.

Today was the last day the water park is open. It's so weird that here pools close after Labor Day. In Florida, we were still swimming in December! We had lots of fun and took pictures for me to scrapbook (if I ever get to current pictures).