It's Friday! Let's Talk Fit!

So it has been rainy. What else can you expect from April, right? Well, I have only gotten out on a few walks and I am still not brave enough to start doing actual workouts. However, I am aware on the things that I do to make Alina calm down. I have walked 50 million laps around the house with her. How can she tell the difference of bouncing while standing and sitting? I hold her at the same angle, silly baby.

I know I missed last week and I am sorry. But, I will be a little better about it now. Going into Easter weekend was full on craziness.

4-15-11 180 pounds
4-29-11 175 pounds

I have lost 5 pounds!! Woo Hoo!

40 Pounds to go.

This week I am going to start a food journal. My milk supply is still pretty random and I think it has to do with my lack of water intake and sporatic eating. I hate water. I really do. I will only drink it if it has ice and is super cold. But, this week I will have at least 20 oz of water a day (this isn't enough, I know, but I need to start small). I will also try to eat 2000 calories a day. The typical range for breastfeeding is 1800-2200, so I figured in the middle is a good goal.

Such A Blonde

The long weekend was full of family and fun. I had another baby shower hosted by Ricky's family. It was lots of fun! And fabulous food. They always have the best food at everything, probably because so many of us like to try out new recipes. Alina and I got lots of good loot that I can't wait to try out... however, I will wait because they are bigger clothes and I already know Alina is growing too fast. As I type this she is sleeping on my chest and is so little and adorable... I will miss these days.

Then again, let's get back to the title. I was rocking her in the computer chair and since it wasn't comforting her, I decided to check her diaper. Sure enough, it was wet. She has had a wet diaper nearly every hour today. I swear it is all I am doing. Since she had just peed... or so I thought I decided to leave her on my lap and let her air out a bit. Bad idea. Two seconds of this and she peed all over me. My pants, my shirt, her sleeper... IT WAS A LOT OF PEE!

On the bright side, she is sleeping so cute right now. I picked up trying to crochet. I will post the pictures, when I finally finish something. I am making chains and undoing them over and over. I am too much of a perfectionist and I am beginning to think this was a bad idea... more to come.

Woke Up To Snow

Really, it is mid-April. No, it is passed mid-April! And this morning we woke up to at least two inches of snow on the ground. What is this cruel joke that mother nature is playing? Wasn't it 10 days ago that we had a humid 80 degree day? That was brutal. I might go insane if I can't decide what to do with the electric heater. We put it away... now it is back out. God help our utility bill if this continues.

So instead of getting to go for a walk like we wanted to, Alina and I are struggling to clean up the house. Do you know how much of a disaster a house can become when you have a newborn baby? Well... I won't be sharing photos, but I will tell you it is bad. I stuck to the bare minimum of laundry (mostly because we need clothes to wear and we cloth diaper) and dishes (luckily we have a dishwasher). I think we would have bought paper plates if we didn't have the dishwasher.

Today is a cleaning day. So far I have managed to clean thirty minutes while laying Alina down to sleep. Thirty minutes is the max she will sleep without being on my chest or laying next to me. Another task for today is to make my homemade Mei Tai wrap. Then I can wear her! That will solve everything and I will have a clean house again.

Also... anyone like rummage sale time? I do. Can't wait to sell all the junk I haven't used in over a year. Why did I even move it? Sell, sell, sell. Or upcycle. There will be posts of upcycling old clothes into baby clothes again soon, once Alina lets me put her down long enough to sew.

First Fit Friday!

The above picture was taken in June 2009 when I was showing off my swim suit body for the summer. This was back in the day when I wore make up daily, dyed my hair every six weeks and I was single working hard to find a lifetime partner. Which, that month I met Ricky, the love of my life.

THIS IS MY GOAL PHOTO! (first goal photo anyway... I was 150 lbs in the photo and a size ten. Perfect ten.)

Between June 2009 and June 2010, I had gained 50 pounds. It was fifty pounds of ugly fat that I had to buy all new clothes. The first time in my life I had to buy large shirts instead of medium and the first time I actually was calling jeans "fat jeans". I kept putting working out off because Ricky and I were trying to conceive a baby. And finally I did. July 2nd, 2010 I took the test and it came back positive. This put off working out, yet again.

November 2010, I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes and it was the best thing that could have happened. It made me watch my diet and eat better. It forced me, or else I could hurt my baby. I ended up only gaining 17 pounds during pregnancy. A feat that I am VERY proud of.

First Prenatal Visit: 192 pounds
Day Before Delivery: 209 pounds
Day Home From Hospital: 200 pounds

First weigh in (Today): 180 pounds
Goal weight: 135 pounds

45 pounds to go...

This is all in anticipation of my six week check up next week that the doctor will hopefully give me the go ahead to start working out (more than just casual walks). So next week I'm not sure if I will lose more weight, but I am already eating better and breastfeeding. And anyone who wants to join me in the Fit Fridays - I would love to support you.

Attempt at Making My Own

So, I really want to try fitteds. They are so adorable and it seems to be all the rage. However, we are strapped for cash since the Winter utility bill was ginormous. It just means that I can't stalk cute places like Goodmama Diapers and Twinkie Tush Diapers. They are all the rave right now and have great reviews. This all leads to me attempting to make my own.

I am a decent sewer. I can do clothes, but apparently I am not good with elastic and measuring my child. It is a little too small, but it was a good first attempt. Next time will be better. I promise.

Next time...

I will wash the fabric first.
I will buy a measuring tape.
I will use a real pattern, not just finaggle one.
I will take my time (I always ruin cute clothes by making it too fast).

Stay tuned for the next attempt.

My Start-Up Stash!

So we took the plunge and decided that we would cloth diaper. Mostly for the financial savings, but also because they save the environment and are so damn cute. They can be a little bulky at times, but generally it isn't so bad and I know they are going to look ADORABLE under all the summer dresses I have planned.

For my cheap start up...

Cottonbabies.com Trial Kit - $35.00
2 Small Bummis Whisper Wrap Covers
6 Chinese Small prefolds
1 Snappi

I tried this for a couple weeks to see if I really liked it. I had disposables that I had gotten as gifts to use up anyway. It went well so I bought...

10 Chinese small prefolds ($15.00)
2 Flip OS Diapers with 1 stay dry insert ($16.95 each)
3 stay dry inserts ($4.00 each)

Grand total of $95.00 and I can wash almost every other day. This was all ordered from Cottonbabies.com and all free shipping and it is all new stuff. I know that buying used can be cheap as well which I probably will do. As we continue, I will build the stash slowly. Maybe a cover every couple weeks or some cute fitteds. For those looking for a cheap place to start... this is definitely it!

Being a Mom Begins!

I had my baby. And that is part of the reason I haven't been blogging. However, I will start again. Not to mention, I have a lot more to talk about when it comes to my opinions on how to raise our little daughter. So, from here on out I will probably talk about the following:

-Cloth Diapering
-DIY Crafts, Clothes, and other sewing
-Growing Up in Wisconsin
-Weight Loss Journey
-Video Games & Movies
-Anything else I feel like writing about...

Now to the interesting stuff!

Alina Joy
March 10th, 2011
9 lbs 1 oz
20 1/2 inches
7:26pm

Her birth story

March 9th
Noon: We arrived at the hospital intending on doing an induction. However, once the monitors were hooked up we found out that I was having contractions... I just couldn't feel them yet.

1:00pm: After an hour of monitoring, the doctor decided to go ahead with the Cytotec. Cytotec is a cervix ripening medication to make the cervix more favorable for the induction.
- 2 cm 50% effaced

5:00pm: Started second round of Cytotec, still having some contractions. I could feel them at this point, but they weren't too bad.
- 2 cm 50% effaced

10:00pm: No change and so we decide that I can try and sleep through the contractions that I am having and we can start the Pitocin in the morning.
- 2 cm 50% effaced

March 10th

2:40am: After trying to sleep, but waking every hour to pee... I was woken by a semi-painful contraction and then decided maybe I have to pee again. However, I couldn't hold it on the way to the bathroom and it was clear. Yep - my water broke. Nurses did a test to verify it and I called Ricky to come back to the hospital (he was at home)
- 3 cm 50% effaced

7:30am: After 5 hours of painful contractions, I decide that med-free is not for me. I ask for the epidural and they start the IV drip. Now, I just get to wait for the man with the drugs to come with his magical tray.
- 3 cm 50% effaced, contractions are 3 min apart and 90 seconds long

9:30am: So, it took 2 hours, 7 stabs to my back, and I finally got my epidural. That was heaven. I was so tired. And my mom arrived! Ricky went home to take care of Alexander (our dog) and try and take a nap. My epidural wasn't a super strong one! I could still move my legs and feel them just fine. There was a really slight numb feeling in my toes. So, it really just took care of the pain.
- 4 cm 50% effaced, don't know about the contractions, I couldn't feel them anymore.

1:00pm: Needed another dose of the epidural and they started the Pitocin because the epidural had slowed contractions.
- I think it was 5 cm at this point... I was really sleepy.

3:00pm: Another round of epidural, strong one. Doctor stopped in to check on me because he had a dentist appt at 3:30 to go to. Figured he had time. Which, ends up he did.

4:00pm: The round from 3 didn't work! I had such bad contractions by 4 that I was crying and they weren't really going away. They turned the pit off and I was given more meds through the epidural. The pain went away, but the pressure didn't. I was so uncomfortable...
- 8cm, fully dilated on left with 2 cm left on the right

5:00pm: The pressure only got worse and worse. They made me lay on my right side to try and get that right side to dilate. They turned the Pitocin back on.
- 8cm, same as before

6:00pm: I got the feeling that pushing would make me feel better. And the doctor said that I could push even though I was still only 8 cm. After a few pushes he was able to push the 2 cm on the right beside her head... somehow - I don't know how that worked, but I either dilated completely while starting to push or he moved it. It is kind of a blur right here.

7:26pm: After an hour and half of pushing, with Ricky as the perfect coach - our daughter Alina Joy was born! I screamed bloody murder when she finally came out. It hurt. It hurt a lot. Course, I left her head half out for three contractions trying to get the rest out. Every time they were telling me she would be born on the next contraction... I called them liars after every set of pushes when she didn't come.

I got skin-to-skin contact right away!
I was able to latch her with in 30 min of birth!
I got a few stitches, but not too bad.
My mom was there for the birth of her granddaughter!

It was an amazing day.