Bye-Bye Baby Weight- South Beach Diet

I love South Beach Diet and I am a total advocate for it now. It has helped me reset my metabolism, blood chemistry, and, maybe most importantly, food cravings!

I already talked about why we chose to go with South Beach Diet, but here is my advice for the how.

When you start the diet, there are three phases. The first phase is the most strict and is all about change from your old routine.

South Beach Phase One involves alot of lean proteins, dairy, veggies, legumes (beans,) and nuts. For two weeks you stay clear of any and all breads, rice, potatoes, sugars, and fruits. The nice part is you can eat as much as you want from approved foods- you just have to make sure you have the right choices on hand.

The first two days were the hardest. I promise you, I cried because I wanted to eat bread so much. The cravings were intense for the both of us. The third day, the cravings subsided and I stepped on the scale for the first time. I was down 4 pounds. FOUR pounds!

We kept it up and stuck to the plan for the entire two weeks. By day seven my head was pounding and foggy- carbs DO have a function as immediate source of a sugar boost into your blood stream which acts as a quick brain food.

Our typical day looked like this:

Breakfast- Eggs, Turkey Bacon, and a cup of coffee

Snack 1- Nuts, cheese, or veggies

Lunch- Grilled chicken, a salad, veggie
or veggies, Hummus, turkey, and cheese,
or Black beans and Polish Sausages
or Chicken Salad on a Salad

Snack 2- cheese and pickles

Dinner- Pan Steak/Baked Chicken/Meatballs with pasta sauce/Taco Wraps/Naked Chicken Parm/Fish/Meatloaf

Dessert/Snack 3- Celery with no sugar added Peanut Butter, sugar free jello, or Mocha Ricatta

Around 7 days in I saw the scale stop making movement- I was stuck at 8 pounds less.

By the end of the two weeks we were ready for some bread. Ian was ready to eat cereal for breakfast again. I just wanted a cookie.

Typical.

But the scale reflected a twelve pound weight loss for me- I was officially below my pre pregnancy weight.

We decided to branch in two different directions. Ian pretty much went back to his regular eating habits except less sweets and limited carbs at lunch and dinner (since I wasn't preparing them.)

I continued with a very limited amount of carbs and almost no sweets. But the splurges were fine. Then, the month of February happened and almost everything I had learned went out the window. Ian had to travel and we had house guests. I have slowed and limited sweets and I never have rolls, potatoes, rice, or sugar cereals any more. And the weight kept coming off and is still coming off.

I've talked with several people about this diet and have several people who are interested in giving it a try. If you are too, here is a list of foods that will help you get through the two weeks of Phase One! It is not very cheap to eat without the fillers, but it is only for two weeks and you will see results as long as you stick to the plan without any exceptions!

Food Ideas
Boneless Chicken Breast
Whole Roasting Chicken
Ground Beef/Turkey
Lean Bacon
Lean Ground Sausage
Fish Fillet
Sandwich Meat
Canned Tuna/Chicken
Polish Sausages

Black Beans
Kidney Beans
Garbonzo Beans
Hummus
Black Eyed Peas

Sliced/diced/cubed/string cheese (get alot- the protein in cheese is helpful!)
Yogurt (NO sugar or fruits, our yogurt here is salty and plain, much like Greek yogurt, I think)
Milk
Cream Cheese
Ricotta
Cottage Cheese
Parmesan cheese

Salad
Brocolli
Cauliflower
Green Beans
Tomatoes
Peas
Squash
Cucumbers
Celery
Spinach
Onions
Bell Peppers
Garlic

Tomato Sauce/Pasta Sauce
Oil Based Salad Dressings

Snacks

Pickles
Nuts (not honey roasted or highly salted)
Plain (peanuts only) peanut butter- great on celery!
Ricotta or Cottage Cheese mixed with a splenda, and peanut butter, cocoa powder, or coffee powder
Sugar Free Fudgecicles
Sugar Free Jello
Raw veggies and an oil based salad dressing or hummus
Diet soda or Crystal Light

Remember, no fruits, no to little caffeine, no corn, and read your labels on sauces, dips, and marinades. Try to use plain spices instead of sauces to flavor things, since there is often sugars and corn starch in sauces.

You'll have to push yourself to keep going around the 4-6 day mark, but you can do it. Make it to two weeks and you will reap the full reward!

Also, plan out your meals for several days in advance. If you know what you are going to eat you can look forward to those special meals when the going gets tough.

There are tons of recipes on Pinterest and my favorite blog for recipes and tips is Kalyn's Kitchen

I'd love to hear from anyone who tries it!

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Bye-Bye Baby Weight- South Beach Diet

Happy Four Months, Sophia!

This post has been started, stopped, saved, and scrapped several times. I was having a hard time finding the joy in Sophia's fourth month but I believe we are starting to turn a corner.

About one month ago, Sophia's "gas," issues seemed to get immeasurably worse. She screamed. ALL. Day. Long. She screamed so much that she actually went hoarse for a week. I started keeping track and she would be screaming inconsolably for 6 to 7 hours a day. In fact, during this time we realized that we didn't know what her cry sounded like because she only ever screamed. Poor baby.

I put her back on gas drops but it got worse, so I stopped them and within one feed she was passing gas on her own again. But the screaming continued.

Then, about 2 weeks ago, I took her with me on a visit to a local friend. This friend couldn't even stand to stay in the same room with us because that's how loud Sphia was. Finally, in Arabic, she told me that something was wrong with my baby and that she was in pain. It was then that I started to pay attention to all of her little things.

She was getting upset anytime we laid her down flat.
She would arch her back.
She would scream. (duh)
She was loudly swallowing alot while screaming.
And she was waking up at 45 minutes all day AND night.

A light went off in my head and I remembered a chapter with the title of "The inconsolable baby," in Baby Wise so I rushed to our office, found the book, and reread the chapter.

Ding! Another light went off in my head and I realized it wasn't gas at all, but probably was Silent Reflux.

I headed to the doctor the next day but was only able to see a family doctor. He was slightly more than incompetent when he told me breastfed babies would never have colic, shouldn't ever have gas (ha!) and that the only symptom of reflux was coughing.

Um, okay?

So I saw the pediatrician the next day and she diagnosed Sophia with reflux, but told me her clinic couldn't prescribe the medicine necessary. She told me to elevate her bed and keep her upright as much as possible.

We had already begun doing that and though it made a small difference, I knew that the issue would not be resolved and the pain would not subside for Sophia until we had soem medical intervention.

Luckily, I had an appointment to get her 4 month shots done at a different hospital with a different pediatrician. I told  the doctor her symptoms and the other doctor's diagnosis and asked for a medicine. She prescribed something that isn't available in the States but has a good reputation in the rest of the world, so we decided to give it a try.

TWO doses later and Sophia is like a different child. Sleeping better, more comfortable, and CRYING instead of screaming! Like a normal baby! We are only on day 2 of a 7 day treatment and I don't know what will happen come day 8, but I'm so glad that I was able to find some answers and advocate for Sophia!

This post doesn't have her normal stats and such from her third month, but I think this part of her story is pretty important, because it has been all consuming for the last 6 weeks or so!

Anyone else have a baby with silent reflux (not spitting it up but swallowing it?) It's alot harder to spot because you don't even know it's happening! I'd love to hear from others on their experiences with this.

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Happy Four Months, Sophia!

Bye-Bye Baby Weight- The Game Changer

{Take a look at my first post, Bye-Bye Baby Weight- The Melt-Off, to see where I started at.}

We are just two days away from Sophia turning four months, which means that I am almost four months postpartum! This weight loss journey has really been an incredible one for me- very informative and very encouraging. I hope what I've learned and how I've applied it mght be helpful to some of you as well!

At one month postpartum, I had lost 25 pounds without diet or exercise.

During months two and three (November and December,) I didn't do anything differently. I had good intentions to start exercising, but time would just slip away from me. As the holidays drew near my eating habits began to get out of control. I was eating tons of bread, chips (I hate chips, so why was I eating them? Because they were around.) and sweets. Add on top of that a particularly tight grocery budget and we found ourselves eating less veggies and meat and more rice, potatoes, and "filler foods."

Around mid December, at two and a half months postpartum, I told myself to just get through Christmas. I had plateaued at 25 pounds less and finally, around that time, I began to see movement on the scale. It may have only been 3-4 pounds, but it was big to me! I was within ten pounds of my prepregnancy weight goal.

New Years came with it a resolution of sorts for Ian and I. We started South Beach Diet, Phase One on January 1st, 2013. Ian had completed South Beach when he was in high school and was very overweight. He lost almost sixty pounds as a junior in high school and stuck to a very healthy diet and exercise plan for many years. That is, until we got married. I rubbed my sweet tooth off on him and soon he began eating like I was.

A year after we got married we had planned to move overseas but Ian's job was put on hold and we had to move in with our parents. Our time in Tennessee with my parents was great but very sedentary. We had no where to be,  no work until our move came through, were eating poorly and excessively, and no friends or people to interact with besides my parents. It was a hard time on us. During this time my weight really sky rocketed, I think I put on close to 20 pounds.

When Ian's job plans began moving again we went on a modified version of South Beach and I saw those 20 pounds come off in four to five months. I didn't stick with the plan exactly and as soon as the weight came off I went right back to my old eating habits.

Fast forward to this New Year's Day.

We knew we needed a lifestyle change in our eating habits and we knew how to implement it. I'm lucky, because Ian was all for it and supported me in whatever way possible.

We chose to do South Beach diet again, following the strict two week, phase one and then making adjustments as we stepped into phase two and then three.

Three days into it and I was down another 4 pounds. At one week in, I was down 8 pounds from the New Year. Two weeks in and I had dropped a total of twelve pounds in the New Year.

My belly fat has gone down significantly and I look leaner, which, to me, counts more than what the scale says! I feel really great too and I have more energy and have been able to get a hold of what I am eating and when.

As we stepped into Phase Two of the diet, my weight gain stalled and I knew it was time to start implementing exercise.

I've started  doing Jillian's 30 Day Shred which I have completed before and I am seeing the scale drop once again.

Total Weight Loss Postpartum: 41 pounds (sixteen pounds since one month postpartum)

I took measurements at two months postpartum but haven't remeasured- I will next month!

For those of you interested in the South Beach Diet and the science behind what it effects and why that helps lose weight, I recommend the book The South Beach Diet and will be posting more specifics about what we did and what we are doing now.

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Bye-Bye Baby Weight- The Game Changer

Well, It's Pretty Short

I woke up this morning and decided to cut my hair. On my own.

If only the story was as simple as that.

I haven't gotten a haircut in over two years. Occasionally I have trimmed my own ends (curly hair is pretty forgiving,) but my layers had all grown out and the back was uneven. And the length? Ridiculously long.

And with curly hair, you must strike a balance between being too short, when your hair would poof out into something resembling an afro and being too long, with the weight making your curls loose their bounce.

So about a week ago I decided to strike out and find a salon. All I found were countless recommendations to go to fancy hotel spas that charge over 100 dollars for a haircut. And that is not really in the budget for us.

Then I found a hair stylist who was cutting hair in her home and after getting over my fear that she was a murderer (after all, all the people recommending her had made it out alive,) I left a message to schedule an appointment, but she never got back to me.

Last night, before heading to bed, I told Ian that today would be haircut day, and that he would be my hairstylist.

So, that is exactly what we did. Both girls went down for a nap and Ian came in to cut my hair. I made the first cut though, to give him a guideline of where to start, and I cut off about 4 inches. I probably should have only cut off 3. We carried on though, with Ian cutting the bottom, middle, and top layer and then me taking over to do the angled pieces around my face.

It looks good, but it is SHORT.

You know when Anne Shirley, from Anne of Green Gables dyes her hair and then has to get it cut off to save it. Yeah. My hair is that short.

I haven't had it this short since I was in the 11th grade. In fact, before we cut my hair I told Ian that I didn't want to get it cut too short because my 11th grade cut  was highly unattractive. His only response was, "Yeah, it did not look good!"

Thanks honey.

I guess I'm glad he's honest?

He likes the new cut though, so that is a positive out of this whole thing.

I'll like it in a day or two, when my curls relax and I gain another half inch or so.

Until then, I'll take solace in the fact that if Anne Shirley survived, so can I.

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Well, It's Pretty Short

Sickie Sunday

We had a pretty low key weekend here in the Galloway house.

Friday (church day here in the Middle East,) I got both girls ready for church and go a meal in the crock pot but wasn't able to get myself completely ready by the time it was time to leave. I had myself a good cry and told Ian to take Grace and go without me. I think that might be the first time, ever, that I sent him to church without me!

The rest of Friday and Saturday were spent at home, playing with Grace, taking care of Sophia, and getting some laundry done.

Saturday night a friend of mine called me up to see if I would go with her shopping for some house decorations at a local souq (market.) I took he opportunity for a girls' night out and brought Sophia along with me so that I would not be rushed to get back. We had a great time and I go home with just enough time to get Sophia fed and asleep for the night before he big rival game between U of F (my team,) and UGA (Ian's team.)

The game started at 11:30 pm, our time, and by then I was starting to feel really horribly. My stomach was upset and I was fearing food poisoning from my Fettuccini Alfredo at dinner. I watched about 15 minutes of the game before throwing in the towel and collapsing in bed.

Good thing I didn't stay up to watch my team get beaten. That would have been depressing.

I woke up at 6 am very disoriented, because Ian had never brought Sophia to me to feed her in the night. I ran downstairs only to find Ian asleep on the couch and Sophia asleep in her pack n play. Poor baby wasn't feeling too great either and spent the majority of the day sleeping off whatever cold bug we had picked up.

And I did the same. My sweet husband even ran errands with Grace today so that I could have some quiet (my head was pounding,) and hopefully get some extra sleep. And he brought me back a frosty- what more could a girl ask for?

And, some closing random thoughts:

You know you are old when...

• You are afraid to do a somersault for your daughter. I was so worried about it hurting! Finally I did and Grace got such a kick out of it. I called Ian in to do one as well but he did his all cockeyed- over his shoulder like a ninja roll. So weird.

• Your daughter owns a pair of light up tennis shoes. That either means I'm old, or redneck. I'm not sure which one yet.

• You get excited about finding a free episode of Reading Rainbow from 1983 (seriously.)

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Sickie Sunday

Bye-Bye Baby Weight- The Meltoff

Baby weight. That annoying tire that sits around your now saggy belly after you are holding your precious bundle in your arms.

For anyone that has had a baby, you know just what I mean. And for those of you who haven't, I'm here to satisfy your curiosity with how hat baby weight can come off (or if it can't!)

I want to be really honest with you here. I put on over 35 pounds with this pregnancy. Too much for most women, and too much for me as well. I was baffled because, though I didn't exercise, I really had watched what I was eating and never used the "eating for two" excuse.

My doctor very graciously reviewed my charts from both pregnancies though and saw that I put on the same amount of weight at the same points- almost down to the same amounts each week in each pregnancy.

He explained that pregnancy weight gain is a hormonal thing for many, even when you control exercise and food intake, and that I would probably put on the same amount with subsequent pregnancies. (but he also added in that I could put on MUCH more if I wasn't careful with what I ate. It's not all hormones or genetics!)

As the end of my pregnancy with Sophia drew near, all I could think of was being thinner again. I hadn't worried about it much after Grace, because I knew that we would be trying again soon. I exercised and ate okay but I didn't step on a scale until I was back for my first prenatal appointment with baby #2. I was surprised to find out that I had, without really trying, gotten back to my pre pregnancy weight. I hope that can happen again this time, but I am prepared for a little more work put into it.

I affectionately call the first four weeks after I have a baby "the melt off" period, because that is what happens to all of that baby weight- it falls right off of you!

There is the normal 10+ pounds from just delivering your baby and all of the other, um, fluids that come with it.

You come home from the hospital and it's not like how you pictured it at all- your belly is saggy and still quite big, your ankles are massively swollen, and your face is pale and pastey. At least, that's how it was with me. I even have a picture, right after we walked in the door with Grace when I was giving her her first diaper change at home, but I still look 5 months pregnant. I hate that picture. And I hate that I hate that picture.

Then, in the days that come, you lose several ounces of blood and, if you are like me, LOTS of water weight. I didn't mean to with Grace, but as soon as I gave birth I started drinking a ton of water, and had the frequent bathroom trips to prove it! It really helped flush out my system and get the swelling to go down quicker.

This time around, with Sophia, I made sure to always have water nearby to sip on, trying to down 6-8 ounces during a nursing session, and to take a sip or two in between.

The first weeks are so busy and so tiring, you miss meals even when you don't mean to. You are constantly on the move unless you are tied down to a chair, nursing every 2-3 hours, which is especially true with baby number 2!

I watched diligently this time as the number on the scale dropped lower and lower. I didn't want to put any unnecessary pressure on myself yet to lose weight- I knew it would happen for a little bit by itself. I chose not to start working out until the one month postpartum mark and worked hard at getting in 5-6 smaller meals a day, since my appetite was really suppressed. 

I'm really excited to see how I can do this time around, getting back to a healthy weight and getting back into shape. My goals are simple:
1.) Be back down to pre pregnancy weight, meaning I will need to lose 35-40 pounds
2.) Smooth out some problem areas that got loose, particularly my lower stomach and thighs.
3.) Be able to fit and feel good about myself in a pair of shorts by the time we go to the States next summer (I don't even own a pair of shorts right now!)

I was going to share all of my measurements and stats but decided to wait until I could show some improvements. The one I will share is my weight loss.

Now, at four weeks postpartum, here are my stats:

Weight loss: 25 pounds

Can't wait to see how I do and the progress my body makes!

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Bye-Bye Baby Weight- The Meltoff

32 Weeks

Sundays have unofficially become "Sophia Sundays" on my blog but before I do a pregnancy update I wanted to say "Happy Birthday!" to my Grandma! Grace colored a card for her Great Grandma, that is, before she tried to eat the crayons.

I don't think she's ready for crayons yet.

So, Happy Birthday Grandma! We love you and miss you!


Today marks 33 weeks in this pregnancy. I can NOT believe we are 7 weeks or less (probably) from meeting our Sophia Anne!

These past four weeks have flown by. I said it on my last mini update two weeks ago, but I am significantly more uncomfortable with this pregnancy. I have had some lower abdominal pain (erm, "some" is really a loose term,) but I have a couple more days until my next doctor's appointment. It makes it difficult to walk, climb the stairs, carry Grace, and, oh yeah, sleep.

I had my first Braxton Hicks contractions at 32 weeks and 6 days. I never had any with Grace and it was really unsettling, even though I knew they weren't real contractions. They kept me up all night but by morning, I had realized that I was just a little dehydrated, and with some extra rest and plenty of fluids, they stopped about 12 hours after they started.

The belly is straight out, which is both good and bad. Good, because I often feel leaner than I did with Grace. Bad, because I need a pillar to support the belly.

My skin is starting to clear up (finally!) and my acid reflux doesn't seem to be as bad. Both are major answers to prayers!

We  got to see our Sophia girl at our 31 week appointment. I was suddenly measuring alot larger than I had been, so our doctor just wanted to check and make sure everything was okay. She looks wonderful and is in perfect health. The radiologist was able to confirm that she is definitely a girl (they weren't very sure at our gender ultrasound,) and even did a measurement of her (they've never done that at any of my ultrasounds before.) Sophia was weighing in at 4.2 pounds at 31 weeks! We're praying that the measurement is wrong, because that means she would be a pretty large baby 9 weeks later!

Look at those huge chubby cheeks!

We finally have a plan in place for when and how we are going to get ready for Sophia. I'm pretty confident it will come together in the next couple of weeks. For now, we're "preparing" Grace for having a baby around. We don't think she is really aware enough to understand, but she will be aware that our focus and her home environment has changed. We do alot of playing with a baby doll, making it cry, swaddling it, feeding it, finding it, etc.

"Where's the baby, Grace?"

She just started doing "Where" hands- I love it!

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32 Weeks

Shots and Such

Tomorrow morning I have to get shots.

Two of them, in fact.

Two FLU shots.

Bleh.

Our company requires us to have both of these vaccines before arriving at our training center. They are trying to prevent a mass epidemic among the trainees who are living in close quarters, which I understand.

I'm not totally against flu shots {like I wouldn't picket a flu shot clinic or anything} but I don't think they are really necessary for healthy individuals and I have never, ever gotten a flu vaccine.

Not to mention that darn H1N1 and all of that unnecessary hype.

Have I mentioned, bleh?

I actually have no problem with shots, I just don't like that I am being forced to get these shots when I wouldn't have naturally chosen to get them.

Our company said that if we had an issue with these vaccines, we could wait another 6 months before coming to training.

Uh, NO WAY.

That would be six more months of living with our parents, no income, and no insurance!

So I'll just suck it up and pray that I don't contract the flu from the vaccine!

On a much more happier note......We have insurance!!!!!

Ian and I haven't been on health care insurance for over a year and a half, since our jobs were only part time.

We've worked really hard to get to the point where we think we deserve the privilege of insurance and are so excited to be able to breath a little easier!

And, I'll stick to my guns that insurance is a privilege and that people should work hard to earn it!

Because, Oh how sweet the reward when you do.

Hence, the dr visit tomorrow for those shots.

That's all!

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Shots and Such

Work It Out!

It's been a looooooong time since I actually felt like writing on here. I kind have been on cruise control for the last month. But finally, FINALLY, I feel like writing!

And I hope that makes all the difference in the world.

And even though so many of you stopped by to encourage me, telling me that it hasn't been bad at all, I knew that it wasn't my best. And even here in blog land, I want to give my best in all that I do!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week has been.....interesting.

Truly.

It all started on Monday morning, when I decided to open my Netflix up, and lo and behold, the Jillian Michael's DVD called "the 30 Day Shred."

Now, I have been drooling over this workout DVD.

Mainly because I know she's mean enough to keep my moving.

I may not LIKE it. But at least I'd be moving!

So, into the dvd player it went.

Out came my small weights (very, very small,)

And out came my dollar section from Target yoga mat.

Yeah. Dollar yoga mat is just not going to cut it.

It was like stretching on bubble wrap.

Except there wasn't the satisfaction of that *pop.*

Lame.

So, I shoved the mat aside and carried on. Jillian gave a very motivational speech, and explained the "why's" behind her methodology.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Get to the sweat and tears Jillian!

Oh, she did.

She did.

I loved the dvd because it was SO fast. And short. It's only a 20 minute workout, and was so easy to keep focused on because she switches it up so much. She does a 3 minute weight, 2 minute cardio, 1 minute abs circuit, and repeats that three times (for a total of 18 minutes, for all of you math phobes like me!) The warm up and cool down weren't very in depth, at least that's what was my first impression was. I shrugged it off, and hopped into the shower.

24 hours later....

I was in agony.

Complete agony.

I couldn't stand.

I couldn't walk.

I couldn't sit up without a chair back.

I couldn't lift the remote!!

What had she done to me?!?

The aches and pains continued for the next 24 hours, and I was sick to my stomach too! My arms and legs would shake if I tried even the simplest of tasks. It was ridiculous!

Finally, I headed out to Publix to make sure we had all of our Easter lunch supplies, and what a hoot I must have looked like! Putting all of my weight on the cart, actually letting the bag boy take my bags out ( I never do!)

The final straw came when I pulled back up to our building, popped open the trunk and just stared.

And stared.

"there are the bags."

"and over there are the stairs."

"you have to take the bags UP the stairs before you can get into your apartment."

"Nope. No way. I will just crawl up the stairs and leave our Easter ham in the car to roast for the next five hours in the Florida sun. That way, it will already be ready for Sunday! Great idea."

Then, SHE came.

You know the type.

Running shorts, with a tank bra, long hair pulled up into a perfect pony tail (how DO people do that?!)

Grrr. She just sprinted over from the gym in our complex.

I'm sure a look of disgust crossed my face.

After all, I don't want to sprint! I just want to get to my couch!

Of course, she'd have to make me feel really guilty by offering to help me carry up my groceries, because, "she hates to make two trips up the stairs too!"

"Oh yeah!" I say, "I just hate making multiple trips!"

So I grab my bags, lock the car, and faux SPRINT up the stairs behind her.

Because, if I limp right now, it's very possible my ego might get hurt.

I made it, with only a few invisible tears and unheard whimpers, I swear!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That happens to be the first time I have met a neighbor too.

We've lived here for 11 months.

That's sad.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To whom is concerned:

It has now been four days and I am eyeing that dvd again. I think I will tackle it again tomorrow.

At least I will have an interesting "cooking easter lunch for 12 people" story for you, if I'm shaking like a leaf!

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Work It Out!

St. Patrick's Day

Funny how a big a "holiday," can become here in the US, isn't it? I find it amusing how we'll use any excuse to party.

Me? Well I did absolutely nothing today. And by nothing, I mean I kept myself busy inside the house for the entire day.

Woke up still not feeling good (I started feeling nauseous yesterday and dizzy,) and made myself go back to sleep until almost nine. Woke up still feeling like I was going to fall right over, but I made myself get up and eat something, before tackling the big project for the day.

You see, this weekend, Ian and I finally unloaded all of my teaching stuff from the car. And then it just SAT in our beautiful office, making it look and feel very cluttered. So, today it was my job to unpack, sort out, and reorganize all of the books, including the four boxes going to my friend Olyvia (I hope you have room!) And then, naturally, it made me feel like cleaning out other parts of the spare closet, like my arts drawers, and organizing my stationary and correspondence material.

So I got all of Olyvia's books boxed up and put out by the door, and organized all of the books I would be keeping into three different age groups, and got SoMe of the closet put back together....

And then I got bored.

And distracted by a subproject.

And figuring out how to bake a potato in the microwave for my dinner (what?!? we don't eat potatoes ever!)

And now it's 11 o'clock at night and there are boxes, and crates, and the vacuum cleaner, and our old TV, sitting in the middle of our beautiful office. And husband keeps tripping over stuff.

But that's what tomorrow is for!

PS: I think I figured out I was somewhat dehydrated. I drank two glasses of water and within half an hour I felt perfectly fine. Which was weird, until I realized I have drunk nothing but milk for the last four days. Darn it.

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St. Patrick's Day

Germ-a-phobe

As you know, I am in one of the most germy professions possible:

Elementary School Teacher

I knew this, and have been so grateful that I haven't gotten seriously sick since teaching. But what I didn't realize, is what a germaphobe I am!

Two weeks ago, I had a student throw up in our little bathroom, and immediately I sent him to the clinic, locked up the bathroom with a "closed until disinfected" sign, ostracised his desk, and gave all 18 of my remaining kids clorox wipes to clean every possible surface he touched.

Then we had a lesson on hand washing. All 18 of them soaped up and scrubbed to the tune of "row, row, row your boat," until I was sufficiently pleased with their sanitized selves.

Then today happened.

One of my students came in saying "Guess what? I was up ALL night throwing up, and, I threw up blood!" He was pasty and sweaty and looked like he hadn't slept in weeks.

First thought that went through my head... "Who sends their kid to school when they are like that?! Why get us all as sick as he is?"

Second thought:
"Must ostracize him." Moved him to a table in the corner away from everyone.

Unfortunately, his little virus had other plans as he stood up, knocked over chairs and desks, and sprinted to the bathroom. To throw up. Gross.

Alright, I though, time for you to get out of my room!

So, I send him to the clinic thinking "of course his parents are going to come get him, or he will just stay up in the clinic!"

Boy was I wrong!

Five minutes later, he was back, telling me that the nurse called him mom, (who didn't answer,) checked his temperature, (98.6) and chalked it all up to "having sinus drainage."

Whaaaaat?

So, then he was back in my room again. Two more throwing up incidents, and I had HAD it.

I've had a beef with the school nurse before, so instead of sending him back to the clinic, and receiving the sick child back again with a mean note from the nurse, I circumvented all of that! I buzzed up to the office, and let the secreteary know what was happening. She of course asked me if I actually SAW the throw up.

Noooooo. Who does that? Hmm. My kid just threw up. Let me go look at it?!

Weird.

But I let her know that I had heard it.

All.
Three.
Times.

And that was enough for her to call the clinic and let her know, in no uncertain mean, that sick kid was to stay there until parents were contacted.

Triumph.

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Germ-a-phobe

La Venus De Milo

I thought I would share with you a funny memory that my friend Katie reminded me of recently:

In 2006, I had the chance to travel abroad to England and France for a leadership trip. While in France, naturally, we visited the Louvre.

Now, I must preface this by telling you, that, the day before we left for Europe, I was diagnosed with my second case of strep in three weeks. I was bummed. But, on antibiotics.

They made me a little loopy. In fact, I have very little memory of St. Paul's Cathedral in London because of it.

Talk about "A Foggy Day, in London Town,"

So, after that horrible event, I stopped with the antibiotics. After all, I wanted to SEE Europe.

Then we went to Paris. And I was miserable.

Les MISERABLEs people.

So, I took my antibiotic.

Duh....

And here we go, getting dropped off at the Louvre, having two hours to see the sights.

TWO.

Do you know how impossible that is?

( that's me on the far left, in the Louvre,)

So, we saw the Mona Lisa, and I thought

"Wow, incredibly tiny painting for all the hype."

and

"Wow, I might get very lost if I don't find my group, all because I was staring at the very tiny painting for far too long."

then we ran through roman times,

Up through the medieval ages,

and then we came to THE ROOM.

You know, the room with the Venus de Milo?

Well, I don't really remember the Milo. I kind of do. But just barely.

All because I fell in love with something else.

....

...

The ceiling.

My friend Katie recalls it as me just walking around staring and taking pictures of the ceiling, while all the other people were staring at the famous armless work of art.

(look at it! It's is absolutely gorgeous!!!)

Thank you Penicillen.

(yes... this is my only picture, but I have plenty of the ceiling!)

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La Venus De Milo

Sick, Sicker, Sickest

Ian and I battled it out over who was more sick. The votes are still out and I am not really sure if we will ever know, haha.

To be fair, he felt sick FIRST, by waking up Thursday with a horribly sore throat and a slight headache, I didn't feel bad at all until that afternoon.

By that night, I had the aches all over and the chills, but his throat was passable as long as he kept something cold around (strawberries and grapes helped!)

By Friday I had a cough, sore throat, and major conjestion, but thanks to the lovely mucinex, it was under control and NOT heading to my lungs like last time.

Friday night, Ian and the worst congestion I think he has ever had.

it'S NOT that big of a deal, right? hahaha.

Right. Saturday, Ian was on the mend, and I napped half the day to make it through the parts that I HAD to be awake for.

Sunday, Ian was almost all better. Me, I had fever and chills, and general muscle fatigue...and, oh yeah, no voice. But I was technically feeling better.

By Monday, it was all almost a dream, except for how exhausted we both were.

And today? Only a slight headache.

Did I mention we were staying with my friend, Courtney, the whole time?

I hope she doesn't get sick!!!!

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Sick, Sicker, Sickest

I Think He's On to Me....

Yesterday, as I was transferring one load of laundry from the washer to the dryer, I noticed all of our hangers were missing.

I called for my sweet husband to bring in an armload of hangers, please.

He kindly obliged and shuffled into the laundry room a minute later.

After placing the hangers on the rack, I asked him if he could help hang up the clean clothes.

"Oh," he said, "it was a trap."

hahaha

___________________________

Today went by SO quickly, even the kids were surprised. It, by no means, was a good day, it just was a bad day that went by quickly.

I found out that the paddle is still used as a form of punishment in some school districts. I was SHOCKED when I found out. Well, first of all, I thought the child was kidding/lying. Then I thought, "oh my gosh! some administrator is beating the kids without anyone knowing!"

Then, I ran into that administrator and she told me that she gave said student 3 licks and asked me how he was doing.

SHOCKED I tell you.

So I have given alot of thought to this today, and I think I have decided I am definitely NOT okay with corporal punishment in the school system. I think it is something that should be a private family choice and that should not be given by anyone other than the parents. I'm even against grandparents and aunts/uncles doing it. I just think that if, like people say, it is a tool meant to teach children there are painful consequences for their actions, then by having so many people 'whooping' them into submission will send the wrong message.

Don't get me wrong. I am all for spanking. Spanking your own children. Even in my years upon years of babysitting/nannying I never took that discipline system onto myself. Some of you are probably thinking "Good, I wouldn't want my babysitter spanking my kids!" Well, I was with most of my families so long, some of them had given me express permission to spank when absolutely necessary, (probably because they knew I wasn't just going to beat their kids silly, and I was trusted.)

I actually did once. To a child that I had been given permission to. And although I felt that the kid learned the lesson, I just didn't feel like it was my place to do it. So I never have again.

I have no doubt that Ian and I will use it one day down the road, but only because both of our parents were such excellent models of it.
1. They did not do it out of anger.
2. They explained what we did wrong.
3. They gave a chance for apology afterwards (which is super important, I think)
4. To my knowledge, they were the only ones who ever did spanking(although it's very possible I could have been spanked once or twice by other family members for my sas.) I respected them for it, but I really think I would have been fearful of anyone else who "had the power" to physically harm me whenever possible.

So, what do you think on this issue?

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I Think He's On to Me....

10 Minutes and Counting

I have 10 minutes until I need to be in bed. Funny, as a child I never pictured my grown up self giving me a bedtime. But, I definitely need the sleep. I usually run on 8 hours of sleep- a steady, strong 8 hours. However these last 4-5 nights it has been more like 5-6 hours, plus the added stress of the new classroom/job, so I am in need of some R&R.

Speaking of class, today it was considerably better. Not good by any measure, but better than yesterday for sure. I have an optimistic outlook on this situation, and hopefully by the end of next week, they will have calmed down some. I have a delicate balance and scaring them with my sternness and wowing them with my utter awesomeness. We'll see how that works out.

Ian and I drove ALL the way to Jacksonville tonight, and back again, and got to try out Zaxby's for the first time. We were pretty impressed. They give you a ton of food for not so much money. Ian was just cheesed that they gave you "slush" ice in your drink-which apparently means for good chewing.

Time for Bed....and Gilmore Girls of course.

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10 Minutes and Counting

Oh So Sweet..

I have heard it said, that, like the "freshman 15," the newlywed 90 can be expected.

90 you say! Shocked I am sure, but that is the number of the combined weight gainage of the husband and the wife in the first two years.

I am just glad that Ian and I have not come, and will not come anywhere close to that. Especially since my sweet tooth is, is, is...

Epic.

That's what it is. Epic. But, I know that my cravings for all thing sweet and delicious are totally under control (despite what an observer might think.) Unfortunately, I have unleashed the beast in my husband and we have both been worried that it would reverse the massive weight loss he achieved 4-5 years ago. Have I not told you about that?

70 pounds. As a senior in high school. That is how much he dropped, 70 pounds. He's my hero, and I am so glad I have him around to help make healthy meal choices and to encourage me not make bad eating choices. Lucky, lucky me.

No, seriously.

I mean it.

Our good friends, John and Staz, (you know, the crazy wedding in Rhode Island, read HERE to refresh your memory,) told us something very interesting.

John, the guy Ian roomed with in Jordan and then spent a ton of time with in his senior year, who is also about the same size (at the time of his wedding in August- 6 foot 3, 175 lbs,) informed us that he has put on 55 lbs. In just 4 months!

I was shocked.

And then a little worried for them.

But overall, I am glad to know that we are doing the right thing and that six months later (That's right people, it has been over 6 months of marital bliss,) we are healthy and making smart choices.

It is oh so sweet.

And so is the fudgy brownies and cherry vanilla ice cream that we just had for dessert.

Delicious.

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Oh So Sweet..

Interesting Reads...

I spent my evening curled up on the couch, watching TLC, and grading the November prompts for writing. The prompt was "what is your favorite time of year," but it seems like most kids just took the first season that popped into their head and ran with it. They just wrote a story that took place during that season, slapped a title on it, and called it writing.

EVEN, the kid who wrote about how Fall is his favorite time of year because he gets to use his gun to hunt deer-and then once they catch deer, he and his dad (father/son bonding maybe?) get to gut it and bury its guts in the ground.

I was kind of appalled.

Then I focused my attention back on Reba and was happy again.

On another note, my day was WONDERFUL and the kiddos were great. AND I got my insurance packet, so, pretty soon, I am going to be a married, INSURED, teacher. It's pretty amazing, let me tell you what.

Also, next week, I get my first and second paychecks.

Watch out, because I might just catch flame.

I am that on fire.

Or, at least I feel like it.

One good day down, hopefully four more to come.

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Interesting Reads...

My Hands are Full

Both literally and figuratively. Literally, because I spent most of today running around with two glasses of sweet tea in my hands. That is because I JUST found the teacher's lounge and there is free, FREE I say, sweet tea. I was one happy teacher.

Figuratively too, because it's been a really rough week. Here's the story:

On Wednesday, Ian and I hit the road to go to his parent's house. Traffic was horrible, and it took us nearly 3 and a half hours to do our 1 3/4 hours trip. We had a wonderful dinner with his parents, then headed over to my parent's house to hang with my momma for a little, then back to his house for some much needed rest.

I woke up at 4:45 on Thanksgiving morning to take my momma to the airport (to see my daddy,) and I was feeling kind of off, but I figured it was the early morning thing. Came back home, crawled into bed and slept for several more hours. Only to feel even worse when I woke up. Thanksgiving morning was fun though, hanging with the in-laws and one of my new "brothers," cooking and just relaxing. Around noon I decided to lay down for a little because I SERIOUSLY wasn't feeling good, and as I snuggled into bed, I took notice of what kind of pillow I had been sleeping on all night. A feather pillow. And then it dawned on me. It was my allergies!

Well, by that night (during our watching of the movie "Australia,") my throat was closing up and my breathing very labored and raspy. Everything went to my lungs, which I am not sure it has ever done before. I spent the next 48 hours in medically drugged haze as I recovered, but I had lost my voice, energy, and all will to eat, and gained a raspy cough.

We headed home on Saturday night because I desperately wanted my own bed, and spent all of Sunday recuperating for Monday's work.

Monday was not fun because I had no voice and just wanted to sleep, but we (including my students) made it through, and these past two days have been me on the mend and school is finally falling into a pattern.

Well, expect more from me the next couple of weeks, because I still want to reach my 100 post goal, by the end of this year.

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My Hands are Full