6.20.15

Well, I am still alive!
The past few weeks have been quite the journey so far, and it is just the beginning! Baby Lilith Lucille (Lily Lu) was born on May 11th; the surgery went great and we have such a beautiful little girl :) Although she is definitely more challenging than my son was (he really only cried when he was hungry, whereas she cries quite a lot; I think it's because she's a girl, my husband thinks it's because she's a baby), she is still a really good babe. She has grown so much, although she is still smaller than my son was when he was born, and she'll be 6 weeks old on Monday! Two babies under two has given me a few headaches already, but it has given me way more smiles and that's good enough for me.
For the first two weeks after Lily was born I was on the low-carb diet, but I got sick of it quickly because I forgot that it makes me feel unhealthy. I love fruit and smoothies (in my Ninja I put frozen fruit, low-fat Greek yogurt, almond milk and a little Splenda or honey), and even though I love cheese I feel like I eat way too much of it when I low-carb. Even though I was on it for such a short period of time, I lost all of the baby weight plus some (25 pounds), and since I lost all of the baby weight the first time around, I weigh a little less than I did pre-babies. It makes me feel very fortune to have lost it since I always hear of women gaining a lot of weight and keeping it on, baby after baby. I then decided to keep it simple and to count calories and try some new work outs at the 8-week-post-baby mark. I was eating 1400 calories a day, and today I decided to switch to 1200 because I just want it to work faster ;) Weigh-in day is tomorrow so that will be the deciding factor. Even though I have always hated exercising, I'm looking forward to getting into shape and to be strong. I always thought that my 30's would be the best and the only way for that to happen is to make it happen; and the first 6 months have been great so it's been a good start!
I am still unsure of what to do with school. I definitely want to keep at it, because I feel like I'm just not ready to be done with school yet (maybe I actually enjoy it; isn't that a kick in the ass). I signed up for the next two terms in the grad program, although now I don't know what to do again. I felt like not continuing with it would be a waste of the last 10 months (and all of the headaches that it has caused!), but I still got something out of it. With two babies now, and a promotion at work (woohoo!) it just seems like a lot to take on. The English degree got me so excited but having a Master's degree in Psychology would be pretty amazing too... ugh. I am so torn. I was hoping that my husband would tell me what to do (and I am still waiting for him to tell me!) because it's too much for me to decide. Since I took this term off, the next one starts July 13th, so my goal is to talk to my advisor (again... she's probably sick of my indecisiveness by now), and to make the decision by the end of next week. Being an adult sucks sometimes, I wish I could take a day and spend it in my 8-year-old body as a refresher before adulting again.
I'll be back next week, hopefully with some decisions made!
~Namaste, bitches~

5.7.15

I hope everyone had a good week! I did, although this pregnancy thing is getting a little old and I am so ready to be done! Four more days, thank goodness...
I decided to start my diet (the more I think about it, it's really not a diet, but more of a lifestyle change) a little early and began it today. I have decided that instead of keeping my carb count at under 20 grams a day, I will keep it at under 30 grams per day, just to give myself a little leeway for the next week until I have the baby and get home. Today I had cheese and turkey pepperoni (0 carbs), 4 slices of fried bologna for lunch (4 carbs) and I made low-carb taco soup for dinner, which is really good! It contains ground beef (or ground turkey), onions, garlic, cumin, chili powder, 8 oz cream cheese, 1 can chicken (or beef) broth, 2 cans Rotel and 1 cup of heavy cream. For some reason it turned out a little spicier than last time, but it was still very good! In the entire thing it contains 64 grams of carbs, and I had 1/4 of it, putting it at 16. I also drank water and diet soda, and I am trying to drink 100 oz of water daily, and today I will most likely have about 50 oz. I still plan on having a chicken breast with avocado tonight, so my total carb intake today will be right around 22.5. Not bad! It's always hard the first few days without white bread and sweets (especially fruit!), but it only takes a few days and it's awesome how much healthier one feels after just those few days! I love it. I was going to weigh myself when I got up this morning but I forgot, so tomorrow I will. I plan on weighing myself  Monday morning before going to the hospital and then again Thursday when I get home. When my son, Finn, was born I lost 20 pounds right out of the hospital, so I'm curious to see how much it'll be this time around, although I know baby girl will be smaller than he was!
Well, wish me luck! I will be back next weekend I'm thinking; kids have to sleep sometime, right? :)
~Namaste~

4.30.15

Today is my son's first birthday! My husband and I tried to make it special for him, although he had no idea what was going on. We got a lot of pictures though so in the future at least he will know that we tried! :) He tried his first cupcake (although he mostly ate the frosting) and we got him a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse instrument set since he loves music, and a kid's Kindle. He may be a little young for the Kindle, but he really loves it and he'll grow into it! So all in all it was a pretty great day, and surprisingly, I didn't cry once. ;)
 Wednesday marked the first week of using the Essential Oil stretchmark cream, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that they are faded a little since last week! It wasn't a shocker since the oils are pretty much magical, but it is always nice to see results. It's going to be a long road until they are faded to the extent that I will be happy with, but I have time, and I highly doubt that I will be wearing a bikini any time soon! HA! I also tried out some things that I had seen on Pinterest, with mixed feelings. On Tuesday night, I did a foot soak which consisted of Listerine, vinegar and warm water. I will say that it made my feet soft, although I used the green Listerine and my feet were tinted green for a day; that and it smelled funky. After the foot soak, I pumiced my feet and slathered them in a glycol acid cream to help with calluses and cracked heels (Bath & Body Works True Blue Spa). I will say that it helped. Then I decided to "bleach" my toenails - mixing a paste of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda, using a toothbrush to scrub onto the toenails and letting it sit for 10 minutes. Don't waste your time, it doesn't work! So I painted them white instead, and learned that painting your toenails while 9 months pregnant is next to impossible.  Then last night I just soaked my feet in hot water and Epsom salt, then pumiced and put the cream on again. With bi-weekly foot soaks I think I can achieve some good results; I probably should have been doing this for years, especially since I have been going barefoot since a child! I thought of making an appointment to get a pedicure, but the thought of someone touching my feet doesn't sit easy with me, that and my feet are crazy ticklish.
Eleven more days until my baby girl joins the world! I can't believe that my husband and I will have 2 children under the age of 2! I just hope that she is as good of a baby that Finn was - he was so happy and only cried when he was hungry or tired; I do not remember being exhausted at all! So I really hope that this goes smoothly for us; hope for the best, prepare for the worst, right?! But of course we will love her no matter what kind of baby she turns out to be. :)
~Namaste~

4.23.15

Hey all! It has been a very good week, and once the new baby comes and my diet is off to a start I will be posting more often.
I had forgotten in my last post to include that I am a lover of Young Living Essential Oils, and although I'm not a die-hard (at least not yet; it's pretty expensive!), I stick to my favorites which include Lavender, Valor, Lemon, Thieves and Frankincense. Every night I diffuse Lavender for my little one, and it's amazing - it really relaxes everyone. Last night I made a cream for stretchmarks, since being pregnant for merely a year and a half isn't too nice to the tummy skin. The cream is made up of Organic coconut oil, Lavender, Frankincense and Vitamin E serum (I buy the Vitamin E capsules and cut them to use the serum as eye cream). After showering today, I slathered the cream on and took a picture for the "before" photo (no, I will absolutely not post it right now! haha). We'll see how well it works, I'm going to apply it twice daily and take a picture once a week. I am hoping for awesome results! :)
I also didn't mention last week that I was stressed out about the class that I was taking (Beginning Behavioral Research), it ended on Sunday and was pretty much a 10-week long headache. Taking up the Master's program with everything going on in my life probably wasn't the best idea. Anyway, in order to not be placed on academic suspension for 6 months, I had to get a grade of 83% or better. Mind you, the instructor was the toughest grader and was so hard to deal with; I have never experienced such a class or such an asshole instructor in my life. I wanted to give up many times, especially after 2 bad grades that I didn't feel that I deserved. My husband and my parents were such a huge support and encouraged me to keep going, and that it would be stupid to give up halfway through the class. I wrote the 12-page paper in 5 days, and pretty much rambled during half of it, not expecting to do well anyway, and even if I was going to be academically suspended, I was determined not to fail. I got everything in on time and when I checked my grades last night at 11PM, I cried (really, I did). I passed with an 83.5%! What?? How the hell did that happen? I guess I don't care anymore how it happened, just that it did :) Thank goodness, what a HUGE stress relief that was! Now I get to enjoy a few months off before I begin my second Bachelor's degree.
I am beginning to plan my son's first birthday party, which seems crazy to me! I can't believe that he will be a year old next Thursday, it doesn't seem real. It makes me really sad, just because it seemed to go by so fast. I definitely don't take any time with him for granted! After I finish writing this, I am going back to Pinterest to find ideas to make homemade decorations, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse style. My kid is obsessed and has been for 6 months now! I have never seen a kid react to a TV show the way he does, especially when he was just 6 months old! The little stinker sure knows what he likes :) The party isn't until June though, what with the c-section in 18 days (the count-down is officially on!), and to allow myself a little time to heal. That and it's a fun way to introduce the new babe to friends and family. 
~Namaste~

Introduction...

Since I have never blogged before I am excited to begin, and to get back to writing! No one may even read this, and I am fine with that; this may be personal at times and that's fine too. :)

So as this new journey in my life begins, there are a few things that I want to put out there since they are going to be main points in what I write about. First of all, my first child, Finn, and the love of my life is turning one on the 30th of April and it is so surreal! What is even more surreal, however, is the fact that I am having my second baby on May 11th (at 7:30AM to be precise)! It is stressful and wonderful and crazy and I am so very much looking forward to it. My family will be complete, and my husband and I could not be happier. Even though she was a surprise and it took quite awhile to get used to the idea, I now couldn't imagine it any other way.

Also, I have decided that I am going to switch from a Master's in Forensic Psychology to getting another Bachelor's degree in English with a focus on Fictional Writing. I am elated to begin the program, and to have another degree (along with my Bachelor's in Psychology of Child Development). I think I will be done with school then ;) Well, maybe. It's addicting to learn new things and I love going to school online!

And finally, another thing that will probably end up being the main point of this is, is that I am starting a weight loss journey starting May 10th. By documenting it, I think it will keep me on track and I refuse to be one of those that use Facebook to talk about it! Not that it's a bad thing, it's just not for me; it's a little TOO public quite honestly. I plan on low-carbing it, because that is how I lost the baby weight before getting pregnant again and it is actually really fun! Pinterest definitely plays a hand in the enjoyment - so many great ideas! My grand plan is to start off with eating 20 grams of carbs or less a day until I lose 20 pounds, then increase to 20-50 carbs daily until I lose another 50 pounds, and then increase to 50-100 carbs daily until I lose 30 more pounds. Yes, that equals 100 pounds and I am giving myself until May 1st of 2016 to lose it. I feel that this is an attainable goal! I will start exercising when I feel ready since I am having a c-section and I don't exactly know if I will have as speedy of a recovery as I did last time. I will mostly be increasing every so often to work in fruit and whole grains such as oatmeal; it isn't the best thing for your body to stay at 20 carbs or less for an extended period of time; Atkins and South Beach only say for 2 weeks, but I am extending it because I feel like I know what I am doing by now :) Being 30 years old and researching many different diets and ways of eating for over 10 years now I consider myself a nutritionist (since they're the ones that don't need a degree to be one!).

So now that I have completely bore anyone who is reading this, I believe my intro is complete! I may not write much before the 10th since I have much 'nesting' to attend to, but I may have a thought or two to share! 

~Namaste~