Week 5 weigh in

Dear Body,

I just want to thank you for boosting my self esteem.  Your slow but steady transformation has been fascinating to watch.  I apologize that I haven't been able to exercise you much.  I promise when spring arrives we will make a better effort.  Despite this you have managed to loose yet another 2 pounds leaving me with only 5.5 more pounds to go until I reach my goal and a total loss to date of 11.5 pounds.  At this rate, I expect that perhaps I may reach my goal well before my deadline.  Thankyou! 

I hope that you like that I haven't starved you.  In fact, it's very rare that I even get hungry.  I hope that you like that I have fed you lots and lots of vegetables and good healthy food.  I hope that you like that we no longer eat meat, although I have felt you crave it this last week a time or two (thankfully the cravings haven't been too bad).  I hope that you like that I have cut way back on my sweets intake (yet another craving you have thrown my way this week).  We have increased our caffeine intake, I hope that's OK.  I'm proud of you for coming through for me and hope you are proud of me for the changes I made for you.

At this point, I plan on sticking with the diet indefinitely.  I figure at some point you'll settle into a weight you want to be.  If it's above my goal we'll have to have revise the plan a little to keep moving forward.  If it's below my goal, awesome!  I know you can't get smaller forever right?  As a big reward for being so diligent for me, I would like to treat you to a nice new outfit or two.  My clothing all fits very nicely now and hopefully will fit nicely when I reach my goal.  I'm not sure I can afford an entire new wardrobe, but I do believe I have some skinnier jeans stowed away somewhere.  I can't wait to go to the pool this summer and not be embarassed.  I may actually fit in my suit this year. 

Anyhow, just a big thankyou letter from me, your owner.  We make a good team!

January pics

First up we have Jeff and the girls. This is how I found them one Saturday morning when Jeff was being kind enough to try to let me sleep in a little.

 

Here's Kadyn in one of her many dress up outfits.

Kadyn decided to put her barbies down for a nap with some of my home made wipes and read them a bedtime story (aka the book mommy made for Kadyn's beginning reading lessons)

  

Here is our house after Thursday's snow storm.  Jeff shoveled it twice.  Unfortunately, the girls were too sick to play in it.

I remember sitting on a stool to watch things bake in the oven and showed this wonderful childhood experience to Kadyn. She enjoys it too.

 

My little cutie pie waiting anxiously for the tub to fill. I  love naked baby butts. They are so adorable.

 

One of the little guys I get to babysit everyday sporting Kadyn's pink dress up hat.  It's so funny watching a beginning walker walk around sporting this "granny" hat.  

There's January folks!

Week 4 weigh in

Weighed in this morning.  Lost one pound.  This is the least amount lost in one week to date, but still lines up with my overall goals so no worries.  Only 7.5 more pounds to go before I reach my goal.  I've lost a total of 9.5 lbs.  I wondered if this week wouldn't be as good. I made a dish with cream cheese.  Yummy!  It was well worth it.

Last night I made a barbecue tofu dish.  Sounds gross, but it was so yummy.  I finally figured out how to cook tofu correctly, so it had a more meaty texture and stayed together better.  I must say, I'm getting quite good at vegetarian cooking.  I just love it.  I can't believe I've been meatless for an entire month....well almost.  I did allow myself shrimp last week and salmon this week.  I feel OK eating fish. It is so good for you, and the movie Food Inc. didn't go into the fish market, so I'm going to plead innocence is bliss when it comes to seafood.

My new favorite dishes this week included a fresco salsa, cream cheese/black bean pinwheels, barbecue tofu sandwiches with caramelized onions, and a tomato/avocado/feta salad.  It's been a yummy week.  What's even better is that I have so many leftovers, I never have to cook separate things for myself during lunch (I cook meat for the kiddos).  I even have enough left over to freeze half of what I make, so I'm getting well stocked with quick vegetarian meals I can pull out of the freezer for days, if I don't feel like cooking.  Now all I have to do is convince my youngest to eat beans and then I'll have it made. 

Wish come true.

With a little help from God, my wish came true.  Both boys are staying at home today.  It is snowing like crazy right now, and we live at the bottom of a very steep hill.  Our street has yet to be plowed.  I am not charging the parents for today even though it was their choice not to bring the boys because I felt bad that it is due to our hill. This snow couldn't have come at a more perfect time.  Everyone needs to just stay at home and rest.  Sometimes answers to prayers come in such unexpected ways.  I find it hard to believe that God sent the snow just for me, but I've caught myself pondering it.

Anyhow, the girls came back from the doctor with meds.  Each was prescribed a different antibiotic.  Brennan was also given a breathing treatment since the nurse practitioner heard a little bit of wheezing in her chest.  She also turned out to have an ear infection.  This explains A LOT!  No wonder she was miserable.  Glad I took them in.  Brennan fell asleep in the van and maybe got 15 minutes of sleep.  Therefore, she refused to take a nap.  I was bracing myself for another cranky, clingy day.  It was actually quite the opposite.  For the first time (in I don't know how long) she was happy, content, and just delightful.

On the contrary, Brennan slept awful last night.  She didn't cough at all, so I'm guessing it was the ear, the lack of a nap, or teething that was preventing her from resting well. I  ended up sleeping with her on my chest on the couch after the third time having to get up with her.  Consequently, I'm exhausted.

Hoping today brings some normalcy, some healing, and some rest.  I'm looking forward to having a houseful of happy, healthy children come Monday morning.  I'm looking forward to being healthy myself.  A change is a coming. I can feel it:)

Just go home and get better

Yesterday was a trying time at daycare.  It's hard enough taking of one sick child let alone 5 sick children all while being sick yourself.  Thankfully, one of the parents had enough smarts to keep her son home today.  My house was a living germ yesterday.  I was covered in snot, coughed on, and sneezed on.  Kids were fighting more than normal.  Preschool time was a flop, as little Sean just glazed over when I tried to work with him on numbers 1-3.  Both boys have confirmed cases of croup.  Little Kie especially isn't doing well.  He's so tired, but having trouble sleeping.  He has NO appetite, and he just wants his mom.  I can't really blame him.  Given his condition, I'd want my mom too.

I'm pretty sure my girls have croup too, but I really don't feel they need to go to the doc.  The drugs that they can give them only treat the symptoms; it is a virus that really just has to run it's course.  Other than that, the course of treatment is humidifiers and lots of fluids.  Apparently, croup mostly acts up at night.  Some kids will wake coughing and can't stop and often times have trouble breathing.  My girls have had pretty restful nights of sleep with occasional coughs.  Therefore, I didn't feel it necessary to take them in yet, and they are pretty happy most of the day. When they wake and start coughing, it just sounds awful but they have never had trouble breathing and if they do, I will get them in ASAP. I feel like I want to cough for them; you can just hear the mucus in there trying to get out. It is nasty stuff.  They have never had croup before so this is new territory for me. 

Anyhow, for those who've been through it before with your own kids, you understand my pain.  I really just wish everyone would keep their kids home until they felt better.  However, for one of the parents, it just isn't an option.  She is a single mom of two and out of sick days.  So for now, we are praying for healing and hoping God comes through quickly.  I don't wish this on anyone.

UPDATE:  Scheduled an appt. with the doc at 11:00 today.  Jeff will have to take them in.  Another mom told me horror stories of croup.  This mommy doesn't want to be one of those horror stories.

A regular comedian

Last night, being the regular comedian he is, Jeff decided to follow Kadyn on her way to the bathroom and ask, "Going to the pool to drop off the kids?"  Kadyn says, "No."  Then she proceeded to do her business.  Five minutes later she comes out of the bathroom and exclaims, "Mom!  Dad said he wants to drop me off at the pool.

Believe it....or not

Ever since Kadyn got the pukes last Wednesday she's not quite been herself.  The day after that awful night she slept a good chunk and slowly started nibbling on food.  By the end of the night she even tried her hand a few times on the trampoline, so I thought it was behind us and called the daycare parents and told them to bring the kiddos the next day.  The next day she seemed like herself with the few exceptions of telling me her tummy hurt and then laying down for a few minutes only to pop up again and resume playing. I figured she liked the attention she got when she was sick and was just vying for a little more attention so was faking a tummy ache.  No puking was taking place, so it must be fake.  Right?

Yesterday, same thing.  She must have told me 4 or 5 times her tummy hurt, laid down and then up and at em.  I figured we needed to have a little discussion about telling the truth.  I told her the story of the The Boy who Cried Wolf.  I told her there were other ways to get attention, that one should never lie about being sick otherwise no one will believe her when she really does get sick.  She seemed to understand.

Flash forward to today, the girl will hardly eat anything and is dragging dragging dragging.  All she wants to do is lay down and do nothing or snuggle.  She has told me she feels fine, and then she doesn't feel fine.  Now she is napping on the couch.  She never takes naps.  No puking, no whining, no crying, no runny nose (that's Brennan's problem at the moment, buckets of snot).  I'm so confused.  This isn't normal, so perhaps she's just having trouble regaining her energy.  I'm not really sure what to believe because she seemed almost normal the last day of daycare.  She just seems so somber, quiet, and not with it today.  I hate to admit I've had trouble believing her when she's told me her tummy is hurting after her behavior the past couple days, but today, something isn't right.  Wish I knew what was wrong with my baby.  I miss happy Kadyn.  I think we need the sun to come out.  All this sickness is getting depressing.