Progress Pictures!!

So everyone who reads this (which is most likely nobody) knows that I'm losing weight. I'm losing SLOWLY, but slow is better than not at all! Here are some pics of my results:

3/15/11

From the first 1/31/11

And here are the side view pictures!

1/31/11

Hello, Plateau!

Well it seems as though I've hit a bit of a plateau. I still weigh 164. This probably means that I either need to work out more or eat less. Eating less is definitely easier with graduate school and a toddler keeping my exercise time of about an hour a day about as much as I can do.

I'll see what this week has to bring. My old exercise plan went something like this:
MWF: work out somehow at home, whether that's an exercise video or mall walking with Sarah
T/TH: work out at school at the awesome new student activity center

I will admit that on MWF, I never feel as though I've had as good of a workout as I do on T/TH, so to conquer that, we joined the YMCA. We have an awesome one here and it's right down the road from our house. So far, I've worked out everyday Thursday-Sunday (and will again today). They also have free childcare which is awesome! Sarah stays with my in-laws while I'm at school and in the clinic, so she's not used to a day-care type setting, but she's adjusting normally. Each day it gets better for her. We'll see what happens to my weight loss now that I'll be working out every day!

The good news is that I can fit into a pair of jeans I got for Christmas that didn't fit! I was a size 10 at Christmas and the jeans are a size 8. Now they fit!! I also broke down and bought my first piece of shapewear at Target. I really want some Spanx, but darn it, it's just not in the good ole' budget right now! So these will do, and already my black pants that were alot tight are now just a little tight! I figure a few more days of eating right and working out and I'll be in them!

The goal for today: eat well, exercise, and drink at least 100oz of water! I can do this!

My unpopular opinion for today

So my unpopular opinion was brought to the forefront this morning whilst checking my facebook page. I was having a lovely morning when all of a sudden I come across a post from a college acquaintance from undergrad. She's pregnant, which is wonderful. It's a boy, which is fantastic. Here's the kicker: His name? 

Jayms

That's right, ya'll, she's naming her boy Jayms, which is pronounced James for those of you whose eyes are so burned by the addition of the 'y' and deletion of the 'e' in what is otherwise a strong, traditional male name that you cannot possibly go back to read it again and decipher the pronunciation. 

So my unpopular opinion isn't necessarily that people name their kids trendy names or anything, although I do have a friend who is naming her son a horrendous made-up name that he'll probably change the second he turns 18. Nobody wants to trust a 30 year old man named Aspen to be their financial advisor or something equally as professional one day. 

I hate made-up names. I hate additional letters or blatant changing of the spelling just to make your kid "unique". They're not unique, they're weird. That, and they'll spend the rest of their lives saying "My name is James. J-A-Y-M-S. Yes, I know it's weird."

We named our daughter Sarah. Classic? Yes. Plain? Maybe. Will anybody ever look at her name and say, "What were her parents thinking?" Absolutely not.

Sharing is Caring

This post is going to be mostly stream-of-consciousness typing, so hang in there with me. This post will be about many things.
1. Well it appears the daughter has shared her sickness with me, but I'm determined to beat it. I don't feel bad just yet, but I can feel myself getting sick. In honor of that, I busted this out this morning:

I have a love-hate relationship with it. I hate it because it feels weird, burns sometimes, is awkward to use, and makes me sneeze. I love it because it works. Plain and simple.

2. I've decided I'm going to do Lent this year. No, I'm not Catholic, but I did graduate from a Jesuit Catholic University, so that makes me kind of Catholic. Overall, I'm a strong Christian who is protestant. I happen to attend a Southern Baptist Church right now, but wouldn't call myself "southern baptist". I would just as easily attend a Christian church, but we didn't choose that church for our home for now. I've been inspired by Courtney over at Type B Mom who says that although I'm not Catholic I'm welcome to participate. So for Lent, I'm giving up sugar and chocolatey stuff. This is hard for me, as sugar/chocolatey stuff is my favorite thing in the whole wide world. But I'll do it, both for religious reasons and for my waistline reasons.

3. I have annoying neighbors who were blaring R&B and Soul music at 9:30 last night and woke Sarah up. They got a piece of my mind. I can't wait to move out of this townhouse. It's tiny. It's dark. It's impossible to keep clean with my child running around.

That's all for now. Bye!

Oh, McFatty Monday, you came so soon!

McFatty Monday is like any other Monday; it comes way to soon. I'll go ahead and just say that I'm not weighing this morning. My kid was horribly sick this week and I did NOT do well on eating or working out; largely because I only ate what I could hold in one hand while she slept on me from Tuesday through Saturday morning. This week, though, I'm back at it. Hopefully she won't be sick and I can really get in there and lose some weight. Last week I started back going to bootcamp on Monday nights and I will go again tonight, even if that means that Mike is putting Sarah down (she only wants mama to put her down).

Last night, I went over to the in-laws' and walked on their treadmill. I need to go walking this morning. Sarah and I are so awesome we go mall walking with the senior citizens a couple times per week. We are by far the youngest ones there, but they love seeing Sarah.

I have a friend who's lost a ton of weight by only eating 1200 calories/day and no more than 20 grams of fat/day, as well as exercising at least 1 hour per day. I think this sounds like an effective way to lose weight, but not a way to keep it off long-term. My goal is to lose it slowly, and keep it off.

So, my game plan for this week:
Protein shake or smoothie for breakfast (like normal, but unlike what happened last week)
Sensible Lunch (salad, soup, etc)
PORTION CONTROL for dinner: 
Ya'll, I can cook. My Mama and Grandmama taught me to cook, and people like what I cook, but you will not lose weight on it. As I type I have 8 sticks of butter in my fridge and the large size carton of cream. My Grandmama would be proud. She's probably smiling down from heaven on my refrigerator. The cream will be used this week, as will probably half of the butter. It may kill me, but if butter and cream are wrong I don't want to be right! So for dinner I eat half of a serving and a big salad to fill me up. I know if I don't have my comfort food, I won't feel satisfied. So there's the game plan for this week! Here goes nothing!
Ashley

Mama said there'd be days like this

So my sweet Sarah is maybe sick again. I say maybe because she's not eating or drinking normally and is generally whiny, but is playing pretty normally. Anyhow, I'm keeping an eye on her and may take her to the doctor in the morning.

I've often looked back on this past year in awe that I actually made it. We tried so very hard to get pregnant (and stay that way for a while) and I was so happy to be pregnant and deliver Sarah, even if it was 4 weeks early. Now my sister is pregnant, and I"m starting to go through those first few months over in my head.

In the hospital, she had trouble keeping her temperature up despite the warm swaddle they had her in. Instead of putting her in the NICU again to keep her warm, I requested that we try kangaroo care first. I'll never forget the feeling of her skin on mine. With her like that, she stayed warm enough. We spent hours like that. She would nurse, sleep, and just look around, all the while soaking up her mama's warmth and love.

I remember the very first time I saw her, and I heard her cry. I cried just as hard because I was so grateful. She was healthy; tiny, but healthy. I remember getting up at night to pump breastmilk for her, and continuing on even when it was hard, painful, and I just wanted to mix her some formula and call it a day. I remember crying because she was crying, and crying because I was so happy.

This past year has definitely had it's ups and downs. Becoming a mother while still in graduate school is the hardest thing I've ever done. I can honestly say, though, that every time I look at Sarah, it is all worth it. When she snuggles close, gives me a kiss, or just laughs at me for being silly with her, I know it's worth it. She is my everything, and even my hardest days with her are better because they're with her. 

Sarah 7 months old

Sarah 7 months old

McFatty Monday!!

Hi, all! It's McFatty Monday again, and I've maintained my weight of last week. So, no loss, but no gain so I guess that's good. I'm going to really focus in on my eating this week, and am considering a sugar fast. It's no secret that I'm a Christian, and fasting is a part of the Christian faith sometimes. I've decided that anytime I really crave sugar (which is a lot!) that I'll remember God's faithfulness and cling to that. His faithfulness has been there through many of my life's trials, and not having sugar should be the least of these trials.

I'm having to give myself a pep talk this morning as I'm trying to figure out what to wear to the clinic today; my supervisor never tells me when it's a jeans day, so I always wear khakis or a skirt. Today may be a skirt or dress day! Hope everybody has a wonderful Monday!

Much love,
Ashley