A diet. Me? YES! ME!

So, I started weight watchers Nov. 2. Yes, I say diet, not change of life. I hope, ultimately, that is what it will become, but if I'm being honest, right now, it is a diet. I want to lose weight. I want to feel better. I want to keep up with my kids. Yadda, yadda, yadda.

So far, I have lost 4lbs. As of yesterday, anyway. I am extremely obsessive about things so hubster hid the scale for me (I asked, he's not being a jerk or anything) until Friday morning which is my "official" weigh in day. Friday because my one week free trial will be up Saturday and I want to make sure it's working before I pay for it. ;-)

Things are going well so far. I feel good. I don't feel deprived. My biggest issues are eating enough points and trying to convert regular meals (what I feed hubster and kids) in to points or figure that out. SOmetimes I am just saying screw it and eating a lean cuisine with the WW points on it. Easy peasy and they actually taste pretty decent which is nice.

In addition to the diet, I am adding exercise which hubster so kindly and (trying to be) helpfully told me is just as important as diet. So our YMCA has a track and it takes 19 loops around to make a mile. I walked it with the kids Sunday for 10 laps when we didn't know how many it took. Monday I did 12 or 15. I lost track while talking to DD#2. (Need a pedometer, I suppose.) Tuesday and wednesday (today) we did all 19 laps so a mile each day. BIG DEAL! SO WHAT?! says those who do way more than that, I am sure. Yes, big deal to me since I live a fairly sedentary life aside from chasing after the kids and work.

Speaking of work, I have not yet worked since I started this diet so am a little anxious about that. I do not take a lunch break. I generally bring along a pack of crackers and a granola bar. I am going to substitute the granola bar for a fiber one bar (YUM!) and the crackers for a banana. Here's hoping that it works out. I think it will. I'll just have to eat my points mainly in the morning and evening on the days that I work.

I have taken before pictures. Well...sorta before. At the weight I am now. I lost 37lbs in 2008 (without even trying, just starting a new job) so I don't have any pics from then. The pics from now will not be posted until I start noticing a difference. Then I might share. Depending on how I feel about myself. ;-) I don't plan to get super skinny. Just in a normal weigh range instead of overweight and/or obese. Hubster says no way to the skinny minnie look and I doubt that will be a problem. ;-) I have no desire to look like a stick with boobs nor do I think I could get that size, even if I did want to.

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...

The baby food...
The home made pizza dough...
The easy peasy shredded cheese...
The no more sore hands mixing together pumpkin muffin mix...

That's four so far. I'm sure there will be many more in the future!

Yes, still loving on the food processor. Stoked to try the home made pizza tonight. Am going to let the kids dress it out and decorate as they wish, but it sure feels good to make stuff from scratch without getting a big pain in the bum at the same time that I am doing it.

The kids all have off from school tomorrow and I am excited. Since I work every Saturday, which used to be our fun day to do things while the kids were in school, I adore it when they get a day off from school. I think we're going to schlep up to Asheville, hit some thrift shops, maybe the nature center. We shall see. The bigs seem to think that they are now too old for the nature center, but I beg to differ! I *heart* the nature center b/c most, if not all of the animals within are there specifically on a rehab basis so it is not like a normal "zoo" where otherwise healthy animals are taken from the wild and put in captivity. That's one of the many reasons that we have a membership there.

A new toy...I am in love...

oOur anniversary is coming up shortly and I posted chattily on facebook that I knew what I was having hubby get me. A food processor! No sooner did I post it than my mother popped up and said "YAY! We had no idea what to get you!"

Shortly thereafter, a cuisinart food processor showed up on my door step. Oh my! The possibilities are endless. I thought I loved my blender. I thought I might marry my crock pot. The food processor? I may just run away with it!

So far, I have only made two trays of baby food for Baby G. He seemed to like it, although he wasn't sure what to think at first. It was so very cheap which gets two thumbs up from me. I spent $2 to make two trays of food. That same $2 would have bought me just under four jars of baby food. AWESOME!

So what did hubster get me? A puppy. Yes, ladies and gentleman, the man who swore we would never have another dog in the house, got me a puppy. A silly looking little mutt who I fear will grow up being picked on by the other dogs around the neighborhood, but the kids love him. He's supposedly part miniature pinscher, half toy poodle, but who knows where the truth of his breeds lies. He looks like a terrier mix to me, but so do all of the pictures that I have found of pini-poo's. Stupid name, eh? Yup. I suggested Poopin was more appropriate since he seems to poop in and on any and every thing! ;-)

I swear they know...

they can sniff it out like food. Mommy is in a good mood! Quick! Go ask her for something! A popsicle, a treat, a raise in our allowance, a Mercedes!

Unfortunately, they are not quite as good at sniffing out a bad mood. That would be a very beneficial tool for them to have. Mommy is in a bad mood = stay away and don't push her. They've haven't quite figured that one out, yet. I truly look forward to the day that they do. For their sake and for mine. ;-)

Baby G has been exceptionally cranky lately. I am not sure what type of alien came and took my sweet, precious, well behaved baby, but he is no longer here. I can go on and on, telling people with babies that this happens, it's a stage when they are approaching a new stage in life, learning new things, etc. Yeah, well, that's all well and good when I'm telling someone else. It's another matter entirely when it's MY baby and I am dealing with it! *snort*

Today...

started out as a bad day. I think all five kids and myself woke up in a bad mood and their bad moods only made mine intensify. Sent the older three off to school and sat here thinking about how grumpy I was. Ha! That doesn't help! So I got the two littles dressed in their swimming duds and we headed to the pool. Talk about relaxing! There were two senior classes there at the time and the littles just ate up all of the attention (and a little chlorine water, too. Whoops!). Little G looks so adorable in his cute little swim trunks, who could blame them for ooh'ing and aah'ing over him?!

Eventful few days and no internet.

We woke Thursday morning to no internet. Just love when that happens and you call to find out when it might be restored and no one that you talk to has a clue! They came out Friday and said our satellite should be working again...only problem being that we do not have satellite through them! Oy! Finally got it working today (Saturday).

Thursday we were to go for a growth scan to see how baby was growing since they were concerned about his growth at the 34 week scan. He is looking good, growing on schedule and amniotic fluid was up again (almost double what our lowest amount was which is great!) It's supposed to be decreasing at this point in the pregnancy [38 weeks] so this was a great thing too find.

Unfortunately, we also found out at this ultrasound that bub had flipped to breech once again. What a disheartening and shocking thing to find! :-( I had been doing websters technique with a great chiropractor for several weeks (which I credit for turning him heads down originally) as well as inversion. As of the 36 and 37 week ultrasounds to check fluid levels and how the babe was doing, he was heads down. Wednesday night before our 38 week growth scan, I was awake from about 8pm-1am with what I THOUGHT was early labor. HA! on me who had just commented to hubby a few nights ago that I was surprised not to have weeks of prodomal labor as I did with the other four children. Well, apparently, it was not labor, but a stubborn baby who decided he would indeed like to be upright rathr than heads down. *sigh*

I spent Thursday afternoon talking to the midwife who strongly recommended an external version immediately, as well as tracking down the insurance company, co-pay costs, estimates for versions and c-sections, etc. Unfortunately for us (or fortunately b/c it made the decision even easier), their back up OB only accepted one form of our insurance which means that we would be paying a lot out of pocket (which we don't have since we have been living on DH's unemployment until the factory starts on full shifts again) for an external version (which may not even work and then we'd still end up paying for a c-section if he did not go and stay heads down at that point). The sad thing is that the version would cost us more out of pocket than a c-section. Not sure how a major surgery costs less than a version. I spent Thursday evening inverted as much as popssible and then again Thursday evening, I went through the same contraction like pain and pressure for a few hours so I am hoping like heck that he flipped heads down again.

Friday I went for another websters with the chiro, went to the accupuncturist for moxi and got some pulsatilla at greenlife, all things that are supposed to help turn a baby. I still do not know what position he is in as of today (Saturday), but I do know that I am having more pressure down low so am hoping this is a good sign. Movements are a lot less painful now and they seem to be (mostly) smaller and more subtle, as well as the hiccups seem to be down low as it was when I knew for sure that he was heads down. I am hoping this is a good sign and that he IS heads down and preferably not sunny side up, but I'd settled for a posterior heads down baby at this point, to be honest.

Farm life is crazy, as usual. Everything seems to be growing faster than I can find the time or finances to make new space for them. People say the market is great for selling right now, but I have 12 started cochins outside that I cannot sell cheap which is disheartening. I would not be selling them at all if it were not for the current pregnancy and the fact that we have so much going on, but was attempting to in order to lighten the load. I won't give them away, though and that seems to be the only way anyone is interested. Meanwhile, everyone is laying again and well after weeks of no eggs so they'll go in the incubator, too. Yes, I have a hard time not sticking them in the incubator! ;-)

Big headed profile of the stubborn breech baby at 38 weeks

It's been a LONG time!

So much going on here! It's Spring! Spring brings new beginnings, new babies, new flowers, new gardens!!!

We have hatchings out from ducks and chicks. Such cute (and messy!) baby ducks! We also have an even more exciting new addition expected, our 5th baby boy! He is due any day now, but officially mid May! I had grand plans for a garden this year, but that didn't happen. I bought a big incubator, but didn't plan to do much with it this year. That didn't happen! hehe Still not a lot, but we hatched out 13 cochins from our stock and four ducklings. I've given a lot of hatching eggs away to prevent myself from hatching them myself! ;-) I am not on maternity leave until...whenever...and the boys are both in Little League so we are up to our eyeballs in practices and games. Whee!

Sharing some pictures from around the animals, etc. below to show what we've been up to.

DS#1 fixing some wire issues on the chicken run


Ducklings first romp outside


DS#2 at his first game of the season


Ducklings first day outside #2


Ducklings before feathering out and getting big, loud and stinky! ;-)