Tuesday 25 January 2011

Happy Birthday Daddy




From someone who thinks the world of you!



And not forgeting Uncle Frank who shares the same great looks and birthday as daddy.


Friday 21 January 2011

Fitness Fridays

Man nothing like six weeks in another country and a six hour time change to kick your butt when you try to get back to normal. I have been going to my weekly weigh ins and meetings I just have not been able to find the time to sit down and blog about it.



The new ProPoints plan that I hinted at before I left for the US that I was worried was too fiddly has been becoming second nature slowly. In some ways it is more time consuming but I don't notice as much anymore and it seems to be working so I guess that is the important thing.



So before Fitness Fridays too a holiday break I was down to 170.5lbs, I managed over the holidays not only to maintain but some how (who knows how) even loose .5lb so that at my first weigh in when I got back to the UK I was 170lbs.



Now before I mention how much I have lost in the last two weeks I want to mention something that has played a huge part in it. Madame has always shown some signs that she might be dairy and soy intolerant. It is not a huge deal most kids out grow dairy and soy intolerance and I was dairy intolerant as a child so there is a family history. After accidentally giving her some oatmeal that had a soy emulsifier in it the week we got back she had a big problem and I decided to cut dairy and soy out of my diet to see if it would clear up so other issues she has been having. I bring this up in regards to weight loss because dairy and soy are in everything and especially in processed foods so it has pretty much meant that I have had to cut ALL crap out of my diet. I can still eat a healthy diet and my diet is probably healthier for cutting out the crap. I am getting plenty of lean protein, carbs, vegetables, and fruits just not a lot of chemicals I can't pronounce anyways.



So after almost two weeks with out dairy and soy I have lost 7.5lbs bringing me down to 162.5. I don't expect to be loosing around 3lbs a week every week I think it was just cutting out all the crap and now my body will start to balance out again and I think I will go back to a healthy weigh loss of up to 2lbs a week.



With this large chunk of weight loss I have also hit another milestone. I have lost more than 10% of my body weight. Weight Watchers breaks your weight loss down into small goals you start with 5% then 10% and then your goal weight which is between 20-25 BMI. I have to say that while every week I lost weight felt good but hitting 10% really feels good. I am starting to see it and feel like it is starting to show. While what other people see and say is not the most important thing it is nice to hear the compliments from friends and family about how good I am looking.



On a not as happy note between the really truly crappy weather and trying to get Madame back into the swing of things here in the UK there have been very few walks and none of the epic proportion I was doing before the holiday season. I have been a little rebellious and refused to put my pedometer on as I don't want to be disappointed with the totals each evening after being cooped up in the house all day due to monsoon like rain. The most excitement Madame and I get these days and going up and down the aisles at the supermarket. I am blah I miss my walks and I really don't want to find another way to exercise. There is no point in me trying formulate a plan until I am done moaning and complaining about the state of affairs so for the moment exercise has gone down the tube. Hoping for some nice weather or some inspiration in that department.

Wednesday 12 January 2011

6 Months


Jocelynne you are six months old today I have not idea how we have made it through half a year as it seems both just like yesterday they laid your squishiness on me moments after you were born and also like a life time ago.

You gained 4lbs in the six weeks that we were staying with Grandpa and Grandma America (I think they were sneaking you pork pies while I wasn’t looking!) and are up to 18lbs 6oz. You have jumped from the 50th percentile to the 90th percentile for weight but I am not too worried once you figure that crawling out you will probably slim down again!

You roll all over the place like you have always done it. You can sit on your own but fail to see the point as it means you have to be stationary so Mama has to watch you like a hawk until you learn how to safely get out a sitting position and back on the ground. Grandma America taught you to blow raspberries while we were in the US and you do it constantly now. When I go in to get you up in the morning the first thing you do is look up smile at me and then blow a raspberry, then you giggle to your self almost like you know you have done something funny.

Nothing is safe from your grasp of death! If you can reach it you grab it and if we are walking by something you want you make a lunge for it, sometimes getting lucky and sometimes just keeping Mama on her toes. You are trying your best to throw yourself off your changing table at every change, it is like you get a bout of the wiggles and CAN NOT stay still every time I go to change your diaper. I don’t mind the wiggles so much I just don’t want you to find a way throw your self off the table.

Your sleep is a mess since we have come back from the US but it has only been a week since we got back and last night we had a small victory in getting you to sleep the whole night in the crib and from midnight you only woke to feed so I am hoping it is a break through and not just a fluke.

You have started Baby Led Weaning and so far you have had potato and sweet potato wedges, rice rusks, oatmeal, cucumber, sweet pickles, bananas, and carrots. You were not a huge fan of the bananas but I think that was more that they made your hands sticky than the taste.

You are pretty much out of 3-6 month clothes and have started wearing 6-9 month clothes and some 9 month stuff from the US. It seems like we just managed to get your 0-3 month stuff stored away and now I need to pack up all the 3-6 month stuff.

You make me laugh every single day (although some days you make me want to cry as well). You will look up at me and give me the world’s largest smile and then go back to what you are doing. I still can’t believe I am your Mama. I love you so much!

Monday 10 January 2011

Madame's Monday Update


So Madame and I made it home in one piece though we are still trying to get over jet lag who knew it could be so bad! Jocelynne was so excited to see her Daddy and has been bonding with him since we got home.

Mama has been back for her first weigh in since we got home. Some how miraculously I managed to loose half a pound over the Christmas holidays and will be back with Fitness Fridays this week.



Sunday 2 January 2011

New Years Resolutions

True to form I am running a little late posting my New Years resolutions, and no being more punctual in no going to be one of my New Years resolutions. I was punctual for years and then I had a baby, I think it could be years before I am punctual again. I think a lot of my resolutions will revolve around one word Simplify I don't think I realized before Madame not that I think I would have believed anyone if they told me but being a mom is hard it takes A LOT of time. Doing stuff with and for Madame takes more time than it looks like it should on paper. Just because I should be able to get us both up and dressed and out the door in X amount of time does not mean that it will ever be that easy. So I can bang my head on the wall and complain that no matter what I do I can't keep all the plates spinning or I can just let a few of the plates drop. So here goes:

1. Stop doing EVERY children's activity I hear about. Even having 1 activity a day is a little optimistic. Choose 2-4 things a week I really love to do with Madame and even those are not important if we don't make it to Sing Song time at the local children's center on a Monday so what the world won't end.

2. Madame seems to like her morning nap, if she continues this when we get to the UK only choose planned activities and invitations for afternoon activities. I know it is impossible to never have to do something in the morning but she has been so much happier since most days of the week she has her morning nap at home and can nap as long as she wants uninterrupted. It means I also get some time to do what I want/need.

3. Realize my goal weight at Weight Watchers. I am roughly 35lbs away from goal so if I stay on track for the year and they say 1-2lbs a week is a good weigh loss, over a year this should be obtainable. While I really want this to happen I also realize that weight loss and life don't follow a magic formula where you always loose 1-2lbs a week. I also have no idea how my body will react as I start to wean Madame onto solids and it may take a while to get my extra points allowance adjusted as we move from Madame being totally breastfed through starting solids and what I envision by the end of this year a child who nurses little or none at all.

4. Use Project Life to be able to continue scrapbooking in a less fussy way. While I love to scrapbook in the traditional way with lots of paper and embellishments I don't have the time right now. I hope that it is something that will return as Madame becomes less dependent on me. However I want my memories to be more than just photo's on a hard or even in a photo album so I am hoping that this will be a way for me to have fun with my scrapbooking but keep the work to a minimum until I can start being more creative. I have seen some cool ideas on how to alter and add to the Project Life kit so that when and if I have time can do more but if I don't just adding photos and journaling will help me to document our live through 2011.