Post-baby Goal!

I need to lose a few pounds after having 2 kids, and I need to do it soon!! The urgency stems from the fact that I really don't want to have to buy all new clothes, so I'm hoping I can be strong and have some success. I have a particular number in mind, which is right around my pre-Sophia weight, and will be a total of about 20 lbs. I have a hard time being strong enough to stick with weight loss, especially with 3 kids! It's nearly impossible to cook healthy meals because there is so much chopping and preparation involved, and it's pure chaos around here in the afternoons. So, Paul has offered me a special weight loss gift if I can do it, so I am trying to use that as my incentive.

I know I need to plan better and get more organized in my meal planning and grocery shopping, so I hope I can force myself into a good routine. Lately that has been difficult since Paul works late after watching Zoe in the mornings, so I just eat whatever and do my best to get all the kids fed, bathed and put to bed. The last thing I want to do after all that is clean up a messy kitchen!! My goal is to try to figure it all out once school is over and our schedules aren't so ridiculous. Any suggestions on making this work well would be awesome!!

Anyway, I started my endeavour last week and today I was down 1.8 lbs, but we just went away for the weekend to a wedding filled with yummy food and drinks, so I don't know how long it will take before that catches up with me. Oh well. Today is a new day and I'm starting fresh!! I'll keep you all posted on how things are going, and I hope by writing about this here, it will keep me even more motivated and accountable! And so the journey begins . . .

Back to Work

I started back to work last week :-( I've had mixed emotions about this for several reasons. First, it's nice to get out of the house, and it's really nice to know that I've been missed! However, there's only a few weeks of school left, and it's really not enough time to fix what the sub did (or didn't as it may be) do such as teaching a variety of topics to be covered on the final exam. So, that is stressful in itself, but I"m figuring out how to do a quick and dirty review so the students have a decent chance at passing the final. It's hard to have motivation to do anything when TAKS is over and there's so little time left.

And, what makes it really bad is that I am physically EXHAUSTED!!! I am so, so tired from feeding the baby in the middle of the night, getting up early, working and then figuring out how to fit in laundry, dinner, cleaning, grocery shopping, yard work, and the list goes on and on! Paul has been working late because he's watching Zoe in the mornings so she doesn't have to go to daycare. So, that means I've been doing dinnertime, bathtime and bedtime all myself (not every single day, but often), which I think most parents would agree that those are the most exhausting and least fun parts of a toddler day. And, to top it off, Zoe is not as easy as Sophia was. She likes to be held most of the time, although I'm trying to get her used to lying in her crib for naps. So, that means I get to do all of the above while carrying a baby in a sling! I'm actually getting pretty saavy with the sling, and I was able to actually bathe Thomas and Sophia while holding Zoe in a sling and giving her a bottle. Thankfully, this current situation is just temporary until the end of school , but in the meantime I am so tired that I can barely keep straight what day it is and what I am supposed to be doing.

I know that it will be better in the fall, and I am really, really lucky that I love my job! I"m really lucky that it's part time, and that next year I get to teach Earth and Space Science. I'm hoping Zoe will be in a more regular routine by August, and I"ll be less tired. However, for now, I'm just barely making it, but I"m glad I can see the light at the end of the school year tunnel!