Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Liam sings Michael Jackson
He was doing this for a solid two minutes before i started recording! So funny!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Where I am and Where I want to be
As i sat down this morning with a coffee and butterscotch krimpet i thought to myself about how this is NOT the breakfast of someone with a goal of losing weight. Did i change my mind and eat something else? No.
My vision of optimal wellness for myself is to be back at my pre-pregnancy weight. I will feel better about myself and have more confidence. I will be making better food choices and listen to my body for hunger and fullness cues. I will be more active in my daily life by walking daily with Liam and at night with Alex and Liam,as a family. I will feel healthier, more alive, have more zest, and increased energy.
My motivation is feeling better about myself so that i can be the best wife and mother i can be and not dwell on my weight and body. I want to serve as a good role model for Liam which means making better food choices most meals of the day and being more active. Someone watching 4 seasons of Dexter in less than a week is not the role model i want for him HAHA. My motivation also lies within my closet. Mountain upon mountains of clothes that do not fit.
My barriers are the weather. I hate the cold, i do not want to take Liam out in the cold and i do not want to go to the mall everyday to walk. I feel as thought once spring arrived we will be outside everyday, i have a lot of confidence in that. Maybe this whole thing is just a winter slump or seasonal depression (although i am not depressed at all...i just hate the cold). It seems as though once spring hits i am outside a lot more and i eat healthier. Another barrier is time. Liam is a great baby but he does not give me consistent/solid naps. I have tried putting on a workout DVD before only to have him wake up 10 minutes into it. I don't want to work out by myself when Alex gets home because i only get a small amount of time with him each day and i want that time for us to be together. I would go to the YMCA which has a day care service but we do not have the money for me to be going to a gym, i feel as thought it is an unnecessary expense.
Strategies to get the ball rolling. I need to start small. My vision is my long term goal it is not where i need to be tomorrow and i have to remember that. You cannot expect to run a marathon the day you start running. You need to work up to it. I have a problem of jumping in too fast/hard and then only lasting a short amount of time.
I think overall i need to sit on this for a few days and sort out my priorities and small steps i can take towards achieving this goal. I am still on the fence even after thinking a lot of it out.
As a health coach i have worked talked to people much like myself; those of us in the contemplation state of change. Contemplation is the stage in which people are aware that a problem exists and are seriously thinking about overcoming it but have not yet made a commitment to take action. One of the first things we do is help our clients develop a vision for themselves. So today i am going to coach myself and develop my wellness vision.
My vision of optimal wellness for myself is to be back at my pre-pregnancy weight. I will feel better about myself and have more confidence. I will be making better food choices and listen to my body for hunger and fullness cues. I will be more active in my daily life by walking daily with Liam and at night with Alex and Liam,as a family. I will feel healthier, more alive, have more zest, and increased energy.
My motivation is feeling better about myself so that i can be the best wife and mother i can be and not dwell on my weight and body. I want to serve as a good role model for Liam which means making better food choices most meals of the day and being more active. Someone watching 4 seasons of Dexter in less than a week is not the role model i want for him HAHA. My motivation also lies within my closet. Mountain upon mountains of clothes that do not fit.
My barriers are the weather. I hate the cold, i do not want to take Liam out in the cold and i do not want to go to the mall everyday to walk. I feel as thought once spring arrived we will be outside everyday, i have a lot of confidence in that. Maybe this whole thing is just a winter slump or seasonal depression (although i am not depressed at all...i just hate the cold). It seems as though once spring hits i am outside a lot more and i eat healthier. Another barrier is time. Liam is a great baby but he does not give me consistent/solid naps. I have tried putting on a workout DVD before only to have him wake up 10 minutes into it. I don't want to work out by myself when Alex gets home because i only get a small amount of time with him each day and i want that time for us to be together. I would go to the YMCA which has a day care service but we do not have the money for me to be going to a gym, i feel as thought it is an unnecessary expense.
Strategies to get the ball rolling. I need to start small. My vision is my long term goal it is not where i need to be tomorrow and i have to remember that. You cannot expect to run a marathon the day you start running. You need to work up to it. I have a problem of jumping in too fast/hard and then only lasting a short amount of time.
I think overall i need to sit on this for a few days and sort out my priorities and small steps i can take towards achieving this goal. I am still on the fence even after thinking a lot of it out.
Monday, January 4, 2010
In my childs eyes
As Herman Melville said "The eyes are the gateway to the soul."
I could not grasp the real meaning of this quote until i had Liam. There is something I feel when i look into that little boys eyes that is indescribable. You see clarity, pureness, hope, and an unconditional love for life. Those eyes have not seen the negative parts of the world. They have not seen sadness or anger. They have not seen wrong doings or hatred. I feel the need to shelter him. To only allow him to experience good. This does not mean letting him do whatever he wants to be happy. It means a loving house, a loving family, the comfort of a warm bed and pillow to rest his head on, as many hugs and kisses as i can give, supporting him in his future decisions, and doing my best to raise him to make the right decisions for himself.
His eyes also tell the story of what "taking it all in" really means. Each new environment, each new color, each new experience, and each new person seems like the most fascinating thing he has ever seen. We went to the mall yesterday and that little boys eyes have never been so open. He didn't blink for the longest time because he didn't want to miss anything. The picture below is when we went through the car wash. I'm pretty sure he thought it was the coolest thing ever!
I could not grasp the real meaning of this quote until i had Liam. There is something I feel when i look into that little boys eyes that is indescribable. You see clarity, pureness, hope, and an unconditional love for life. Those eyes have not seen the negative parts of the world. They have not seen sadness or anger. They have not seen wrong doings or hatred. I feel the need to shelter him. To only allow him to experience good. This does not mean letting him do whatever he wants to be happy. It means a loving house, a loving family, the comfort of a warm bed and pillow to rest his head on, as many hugs and kisses as i can give, supporting him in his future decisions, and doing my best to raise him to make the right decisions for himself.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
New Years Resolution/Life Goals for 2010
I have never been one to make a new years resolution but this year i find myself wanting to have a resolution as a way of setting goals for myself and challenging myself throughout the year to strive to be a better person both for myself and for my family. One of the reasons i feel like i needs goals in because my whole life i have been working towards something or another. First it was graduating high school, getting engaged, going to Penn State Hazelton, transferhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifring to Penn State main campus, graduating college, working my way up in my job, getting married, moving to Indiana, finishing my Am I Hungry license certification, and of course having Liam. I feel as thought right now i have achieved everything i have ever wanted for myself, i have reached all my goals and i feel like i need SOMETHING in life to be working towards.
Some of the goals/resolutions i have for myself are small and some are larger but all are significant to me. One of the first things that i want to do involves this blog. When i blog i often find myself typing as fast as i can to get the words out as the come to me. I often misspell words or to things like type our instead of out. Being one that hates to proof read before posting does not help this situation. So my first goal is that i am going to take my time, make sure i am typing the right thing, and proof read my blogs before i post them.
Blog more! I love blogging. Writing how i feel has always been a wonderful outlet for me. Not only does it serve as an outlet but it is a wonderful thing to be able to look back on, a scrapbook of your life in words and pictures.
Keep up with Liam's first year scrapbook. I have a wonderful scrapbook that i started for Liam. It has everything from onesies to band-aids, pictures to blog posts. My goal is to update it monthly with different pages of what has happened that month.
I love working in Microsoft Publisher but lately i have found myself needed the powers of Photo Shop. I loaded Photo Shop onto my old computer a few years back and had no luck in 'figuring it out" myself. I have tried time and time again even looking to the power of google and youtube but still did not understand. Something that i would love to do is take a class or read an instructional book on Photo Shop.
Regain my body and pre-pregnancy weight. This one is the most overwhelming for me. I have never in my life had to lose weight, i've never been on a diet, and i've never worked out for anything but fun. I don't even know where to start. During my pregnancy i was very careful to not gain too much weight. My goal for my stating weight was 25-35 pounds and the day i delivered i had gain 28 pounds. I had read that after you have the baby you can expect to lose around 16 pounds; i've read a few blogs where women have lost 20+. Well not me. I left the hospital 11 pounds lighter, 11 pounds?!? Right now i sit at 10 pounds over my starting weight I wish we lived in a place where it was semi-warm year long. ::Crossing my fingers we get transferred to Arizona or Virginia within the next few months:: I'd love to be able to put Liam in the stroller and go for walks during the day and in the evening as a family. But for now i need to think of a different strategy. I have 30-Day Shread and Walk Away The Pound. I have not tried either one but i know they are not as hard as P90x which i tried to do once and ONLY once...i thought i was going to die.In some ways i don't know why i care so much about 10 pounds, i am still in the normal BMI category and most of all this extra weight came from producing the most wonderful thing in my life, Liam. But in reality this goal is for me and my mental well being. I can be a better mom if i feel better about myself. I can focus my attention on more important things and stop pissing and moaning to my husband about how fat i "am".
Housekeeping. I am someone that gets extremely overwhelmed when my house is cluttered an unorganized. It makes me panic and feel as thought my inner being is also jumbled. One of the things i would like to do this year is set a goal of keeping a cleaner house. Straightening up the living room and kitchen each day, having the dishes done before we go to bed, putting the clothes away after we wash them, vacuuming more often, sweep the kitchen and bathroom daily, and steam mop the floors once a week (especially once little man gets mobile). I find myself already having an internal struggle with how i will be able to maintain this goal throughout the whole year. Right now i have a two and a half month old that loves his sleep; i am so lucky that i get a few goods naps out of him most days of the work week. But i see the future like it is right around the next corner. Liam will be crawling in a few months, awake more often, needed more entertainment, and my the end of the year toddling around the house. I am hoping that as these changes come i will be able to adapt to balance the needs of caring for Liam and keeping a cleaner house. Hmmm suddenly i am stuck with an idea for my next blog; My Weekly Cleaning Routine.....
For my extended family i want to remember them. It is so exciting when you receive a card and a note from someone that you have not seen in a while on your birthday or anniversary. For a few dollars and a few minutes you can make someones birthday a little brighter and that is what i want to do, that is who i want to be.
Most importantly i want to be the best wife and mom that i can be to the two most special boys in my life. No words can explain how grateful i am to have a husband as wonderful as Alex. He does so much for me and he is the best father i have ever seen. He cares so much for that little boy and loves his so very much. And Liam, where do i even begin when talking able how much this beautiful little boy deserves the best mommy i can be. He is so sweet, so content, so happy; he does so much to brighten my life every single day, he overflows my heart with emotion and can melt me into a puddle of love his one little smile. I was not only given the opportunity to be a mother but also a stay at home mom. The job i have wanted since i was a little girl has finally been given to me. I have the rare opportunity in today's society to be able to spend everyday with Liam, witness all of his "firsts" and be his teacher, supporter, and care taker. It breaks my heart to know that here are women out there who want to be stay at home moms by cannot because of the economy. Knowing that they might not be the ones to see their first smile, the first time they reach for a toy, first time they crawl, pull up, and even see those first steps. I will be there for that and so much more. I am the one that will teach him and show him the world. I know that there are certain things that i cannot provide for him. Since we live 600 miles away from both of our families and since our only friends are a select few co-workers Liam does not have many social interaction opportunities. We don't go to Grandma's for Sunday dinner. He can't stay the night while Mommy and Daddy go on a date. He doesn't have his cousin to play with on a weekly basis. It breaks my heart for him but it is not something i can dwell on because in the long run the career choices we are making for Alex will pay off in many ways. In order to get Liam acquainted with people i need to make an effort to get more involved with play groups, reach out to other with children to set up play dates, and get over my fear of taking him out. Not only will this benefit him but me as well. Don't get me wrong, talking to Liam all day brings me great job but sometimes a girl needs some adult conversation.
So that is it....my goals for 2010, wish me luck on my journey.
A Sick Bambino
Last week i came down with a head cold and sinus infection, i tried SO hard to do everything in my power to prevent Liam from catching what i had. In one day i used a half bottle of purel. Two nights ago we noticed he was a little more congested than normal but thought it was because he didn't turn on the humidifier that night. The next night, last night, we tried saline drops, two in each nostil, to help dry up the congestion in hopes that he would be able to sleep better.
Well last night, more so this morning, we were awoken at 6am with a super congested baby. Oh it was so sad, it was so hard for him to breath through his nose and he kept coughing on mucus. We took him into the bathroom and turned on the shower and he sat on his Daddy's lap for a good 20-30 minutes. Bless his heart he was still a happy little boy. We gave him a bottle and then headed downstairs to go back to sleep. I figured it would be easier for him to sleep if he was more inclined so we put him in his travel swaddle blanket and put him in his swing and he slept peacefully until 9:30.
Today we went and bought him a new humidifier. After reading many reviews we decided on the Crane frog cool mist humidifier. I had wonderful reviews and a great price. We used to have a warm mist but from what i've read a cool mist humidifier is what you want when you are dealing with congestion. So we got him the cutest frog humidifier, just like his gup-gup paci.
He has been asleep tonight for a little over a half an hour. We put a folded blanket under his mattress to give his head some slight elevation. I pray that he is able to sleep peacefully tonight.
Well last night, more so this morning, we were awoken at 6am with a super congested baby. Oh it was so sad, it was so hard for him to breath through his nose and he kept coughing on mucus. We took him into the bathroom and turned on the shower and he sat on his Daddy's lap for a good 20-30 minutes. Bless his heart he was still a happy little boy. We gave him a bottle and then headed downstairs to go back to sleep. I figured it would be easier for him to sleep if he was more inclined so we put him in his travel swaddle blanket and put him in his swing and he slept peacefully until 9:30.
Today we went and bought him a new humidifier. After reading many reviews we decided on the Crane frog cool mist humidifier. I had wonderful reviews and a great price. We used to have a warm mist but from what i've read a cool mist humidifier is what you want when you are dealing with congestion. So we got him the cutest frog humidifier, just like his gup-gup paci.
He has been asleep tonight for a little over a half an hour. We put a folded blanket under his mattress to give his head some slight elevation. I pray that he is able to sleep peacefully tonight.
Friday, January 1, 2010
New years eve and a trip to urgent care later...we welcomed 2010
Yeah!! Happy New Year...gosh 2010 already; i can still remember hanging out with Ashely and baby sitting on new years 2000...doesn't feel like 10 years ago that is for sure. This year has been wonderful. Goodness, i cannot express enough how grateful i am that this year we were blessed with the most amazing son, a happy and healthy baby boy is all i could have ever asked for but he is so much more than that. I was very emotional today towards Liam. My heart felt all day like it was overflowing (more than usual) with how much i love this little boy. Today was also the first day that i missed him. As i will talk about later, today we went to the childrens museum while Daddy watched Liam. Being there, seeing other little ones, made me miss him so much, i just wanted to come home and snuggle with him. I cannot wait to see what 2010 has in store for our family. I know next year at this time our lives will be very different. We will most likely be living in a new state, have a toddling little boy, and hopefully have experienced a wonderful year of opportunity and happiness.
So let us back up to new years eve 2009, yesterday. My sister, brother in law, and nephew came from Pennsylvania to spend new years with us and for them to meet Liam. The arrived on Wednesday and wouldn't you know Tuesday morning i woke up with a horrible sore throat. I thought for sure it was because Alex didn't have the humidifier running the night before but as the day went on it got worse and worse. By that night i was congested and developed a low grade fever with lots of nausea...great just want i need when i have visitors coming. So i woke up Wednesday feeling awful, absolutely awful. I tried a few different cold medications but nothing seemed to take away the facial pain and congestion. So Wednesday night i was up all night with a fever and decided the next day i needed to get this fixed so that i could enjoy our visitors. Now as one who hates to go to the doctors i think it took both my mom and alex by surprise when i decided to go to urgent care, all by myself as well. So at 9 o'clock i headed to the urgent care. Luckily there was only two other people there so i didn't have to wait long. I saw a older, Indiana man how looked in my nose for not two seconds and said "OOOOh you have a BAD sinus infection" ... phew i was happy, at least i didn't go to urgent care for a cold. So he hooked me up with an antibiotic and told me to take two other medications. By that afternoon i was feeling SO much better already. It was amazing. I have never recovered that quickly from a sinus infection in my life and believe me i have had my fair share of them. I was uneasy at first to go to urgent care but i absolutely loved it. I am not one to make a yearly physical, no thank you, and to get primary care physical you have to go for a physical and i will NOT go to the doctors for no reason because i am crazy and have such bad anxiety to take my clothes off at the doctors, unless it is the OB...i got used to that. So i am sold on urgent care....got healed QUICK and didn't have to take my clothes off a win win in my book.
Kerri, John, and Evan had an awesome day. I am quite jealous at what they got to do! They went to the Indianapolis Moter Speedway to go to the museum and take a ride around the track. Little did they know they would have a very cool bus driver who let them get our and kiss the bricks. How amazing is that. They kissed the same brick as so many amazingly successful Indy and NASCAR drivers. They kissed the bricks!! That is just so neat. They were overcome with emotion at the opportunity and experience they had and i am so happy for them that they got to do that.
Later that night we made a wonderful lobster dinner with twice baked potatoes and roasted asparagus. After a slight misstep with the potatoes, being undercooked, getting tore apart, microwaving and a call to our mom later we got them looking semi nice.
Mr. Liam was in rare for since our visitors have been here. My happy as a clam baby did nothing but fuss and cry. It actually alarmed Alex and I because he was acting so different that normal. Hopefully tomorrow once everyone is gone he will relax and feel better. I know it sounds crazy, and when i told my sister this two weeks ago she thought i was nuts but not now but Liam, our two and a half month old mind you, we think is teething. He is chomping on everything, drooling like a crazy man, fussing up a storm, and you can see a white bud on his bottom gum. Poor kiddo!
So today is officially the fist day of the new year. Kerri, Evan, and I adventured to the Indianapolis Childrens Museum and had a wonderful time. They have so many fun things for kids to do and see. I loved that they even had a section for ages 2 and under. If my some rare chance we are still here in Indy next year i would love to take Liam.
So that is pretty much my news years in a blog nut shell. So far 2010 has been great :-)
So let us back up to new years eve 2009, yesterday. My sister, brother in law, and nephew came from Pennsylvania to spend new years with us and for them to meet Liam. The arrived on Wednesday and wouldn't you know Tuesday morning i woke up with a horrible sore throat. I thought for sure it was because Alex didn't have the humidifier running the night before but as the day went on it got worse and worse. By that night i was congested and developed a low grade fever with lots of nausea...great just want i need when i have visitors coming. So i woke up Wednesday feeling awful, absolutely awful. I tried a few different cold medications but nothing seemed to take away the facial pain and congestion. So Wednesday night i was up all night with a fever and decided the next day i needed to get this fixed so that i could enjoy our visitors. Now as one who hates to go to the doctors i think it took both my mom and alex by surprise when i decided to go to urgent care, all by myself as well. So at 9 o'clock i headed to the urgent care. Luckily there was only two other people there so i didn't have to wait long. I saw a older, Indiana man how looked in my nose for not two seconds and said "OOOOh you have a BAD sinus infection" ... phew i was happy, at least i didn't go to urgent care for a cold. So he hooked me up with an antibiotic and told me to take two other medications. By that afternoon i was feeling SO much better already. It was amazing. I have never recovered that quickly from a sinus infection in my life and believe me i have had my fair share of them. I was uneasy at first to go to urgent care but i absolutely loved it. I am not one to make a yearly physical, no thank you, and to get primary care physical you have to go for a physical and i will NOT go to the doctors for no reason because i am crazy and have such bad anxiety to take my clothes off at the doctors, unless it is the OB...i got used to that. So i am sold on urgent care....got healed QUICK and didn't have to take my clothes off a win win in my book.
Kerri, John, and Evan had an awesome day. I am quite jealous at what they got to do! They went to the Indianapolis Moter Speedway to go to the museum and take a ride around the track. Little did they know they would have a very cool bus driver who let them get our and kiss the bricks. How amazing is that. They kissed the same brick as so many amazingly successful Indy and NASCAR drivers. They kissed the bricks!! That is just so neat. They were overcome with emotion at the opportunity and experience they had and i am so happy for them that they got to do that.
Later that night we made a wonderful lobster dinner with twice baked potatoes and roasted asparagus. After a slight misstep with the potatoes, being undercooked, getting tore apart, microwaving and a call to our mom later we got them looking semi nice.
Mr. Liam was in rare for since our visitors have been here. My happy as a clam baby did nothing but fuss and cry. It actually alarmed Alex and I because he was acting so different that normal. Hopefully tomorrow once everyone is gone he will relax and feel better. I know it sounds crazy, and when i told my sister this two weeks ago she thought i was nuts but not now but Liam, our two and a half month old mind you, we think is teething. He is chomping on everything, drooling like a crazy man, fussing up a storm, and you can see a white bud on his bottom gum. Poor kiddo!
So today is officially the fist day of the new year. Kerri, Evan, and I adventured to the Indianapolis Childrens Museum and had a wonderful time. They have so many fun things for kids to do and see. I loved that they even had a section for ages 2 and under. If my some rare chance we are still here in Indy next year i would love to take Liam.
So that is pretty much my news years in a blog nut shell. So far 2010 has been great :-)
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