SAHM--Last week of 2009

Hopey1994

Hey ladies!
I'm visiting my sister this week and have been sick, sick, SICK! My entire head is stopped up, and when I try to breathe through my mouth I get super dizzy. Ugh, this stinks. I'm within my calories, but haven't exercised since Sunday. I feel useless. I've managed to maintain, but I'm on a different scale so I may have gained and don't know better.
At least I'm getting plenty of water. But when our girls get together they get cranky and stingy so we're constantly lecturing on sharing. Fun, fun! I'm hoping I feel better tomorrow so I can try going for a walk/jog. We're having an appetizer night on New Year's Eve, so that will be something to look forward to. I'm glad you all had a good Christmas; I'm off to sit in the bathroom with the shower steaming the room.

amypyr

Hey ladies!
I'm visiting my sister this week and have been sick, sick, SICK! My entire head is stopped up, and when I try to breathe through my mouth I get super dizzy. Ugh, this stinks. I'm within my calories, but haven't exercised since Sunday. I feel useless. I've managed to maintain, but I'm on a different scale so I may have gained and don't know better.
At least I'm getting plenty of water. But when our girls get together they get cranky and stingy so we're constantly lecturing on sharing. Fun, fun! I'm hoping I feel better tomorrow so I can try going for a walk/jog. We're having an appetizer night on New Year's Eve, so that will be something to look forward to. I'm glad you all had a good Christmas; I'm off to sit in the bathroom with the shower steaming the room.

Hopey1994, please don't worry about your exercise right now. The most important thing is to take care of yourself first. Once you're feeling better, then you can exercise again. I hope you start feeling better soon! :flowerforyou:

staceyw37

hopey--i ditto amy. sorry you're under the weather. how crummy! just try to get your rest (in b/n lectures) and keep up with the fluids. sending get well vibes ~~~

staceyw37

jr--cool custom. we do reward systems too--but i've been slacking. they get mommy $ (fake) and save up for big and little things. like they had to save up $100s to go to park city and have ski lessons.
now i have to make it more clear--and use them for this week's fun--baking treats, going to movie, making soap, etc

thanks for the reminder. and everyone else--thanks for letting me have my pity party.

btw--dr laura's newest book 'in praise of stay at home mom's' is a good read. it's nice to be validated for the choices we make. check it out from the library and see what YOU think.

jrbowers83

Hey Everybody. It was another FREAK snow day here in Texas. Kids LOVED it!



making snow angels

Amy, you sound like your days are pretty busy.
Sorry you're feeling so ick Hopey. I wish you a quick recovery. Try taking Vitamin C, drinking pomegranate juice, etc. to help you out.
Stacey, I hope that getting back on the "reward wagon" helps. My son was much more motivated after I paid him for being good at the store today. Hopefully it will help.

You know I was sitting here thinking of once again bemoaning how exhausted I was this evening. I thought, boy shopping sure does take a lot out of me. At 6:00 was so ready to put kids to bed, but of course they weren't ready to go. So I ended up laying in my DD's floor while they played around me for about an hour, then sent DS to clean his room (amazing how fast the Christmas toys get strewn isn't it?) and did my daughter's laundry while she played. Finally got them both off to bed a little bit ago, after 2 loads of laundry, reading to both kids, etc. (Umm, did I mention how exhausted I am?) So I sat down here and finished up my food/exercise diaries and realized I only ate 1000 cals today TOTAL, net was -400 something! No wonder I'm so exhausted. Too late to eat anything now, but I know better than to blame it on shopping next time. It's filling up on BAD foods. I had McDonald's kids meal with Diet Dr. P. Now feel so bloated despite staying under on everything including sodium. Well, gonna have some water and then off to bed. Catch up more tomorrow.

amypyr

jr, your kids are adorable! They look like they had so much fun!

Well, I was way over in my cals today, but I got in 6 cups of water. Part of what made me go over on cals is that we have some yummy cake left over from Christmas dinner that will go bad if not eaten. Not a good excuse, I know. I'm the only one in the house now that will eat it. I should just throw out the rest of it. There are only 2 slices left. I will probably make dh throw it out for me. I'm afraid I won't go through with it. And for those of you on here who know me, yes, there is chocolate in that cake. :grumble:

Good night ladies!

staceyw37

jr--well good you saw what it was--and LEARN from it.

and that you chugged thru your mommy responsibilities--kudos to you! outsiders don't always realize how you have to dig deep some days to get thru and do right. so good for you!!
and i did give out mommy money. middle girl even helped with chores and earned extra. it does change the mood, indeed.

our day ended well overall. some serious yelling--NOOOOO you will not see the movie. you hit your sister in the face and now you get to be by yourself in your room. i said NOOOOO
but also, played leap frog bingo with 2 littles and read books. boy got to bed early. and had snuggles with both girls. love when days end with that. ((hugs myself))

alright--off to bed. check y'all in the AM.
here's to us!!:drinker:

staceyw37

ps--jr--thanks for posting those cute pics!! they look VERY happy making snow angels!

Hopey1994

Jr- your kids are so adorable! snow in Texas?! i hope y'all enjoyed it.

Amy- good luck with the chocolate cake. It must be so hard having something like that staring you in the face all day! I'd say that you eating just one piece shows your willpower and strength!

Stacey- your mommy money idea sounds so cute! What age can you start them?

Thank you for all the wellwishes, ladies. I haven't gained any this week, so thank goodness for that; I'll weigh officially on Friday. I've been drinking lots of fluids. Today seems better than yesterday, so maybe I'm on the upswing of this.

I hope all of you are doing well with your goals for the last week of the year. I'm so excited to see what 2010 brings us!

jrbowers83

Thank you everyone for saying my kids are adorable! I'm a little biased but I think so too!

Amy, I absolutely understand the issue with the goodies. A lot of my family was short on money this holiday, and chose to do baked goods as gifts. Which left me with 3 dozen cookies, homemade candies, and a coffee cake. I tried to be gracious about it, but you know I didn't even WANT most of it. So I politely took some nibbles in front of them, commented on how good it was. Saved some a couple cookies and candies for the kids, and sent the rest off to other holiday parties and LEFT them. I also made sure to send ALL holiday leftovers home with everyone. Didn't want Thanksgiving repeat (I ate more the 3 days after TDay than I did on that day. lol)

Stacey, glad the evening ended on a good note. I find that it's the end of the day that really matters. I can have a truly crappy day, but then my son will ask for extra snuggle time, or my daughter will fall asleep in my arms, and it's just heavenly.

Hopey, I think you said you have a 2 year old? The reward system is PRIME at that age, just have to tweak it a little. At 2 she won't understand money, so do a chart. When my DS was 2 I got this idea from Miss Spider cartoon. You make a "ladybug" using stuff you have around the house (I used a walnut shell, painted, with small google eyes. Then cut out "leaves" and tape to fridge. Use a magnet on the back of the "ladybug" and each time they do something good, they move their ladybug up the vine. For misbehavior it moves down. At the top they get a prize. You want to make very short term goals for that age, ideally a prize each evening. Usually this was an extra healthy dessert, extra cuddle time with mommy, or extra TV time. You use what motivates your little girl, and good luck!

DrBorkBork

Can any of you recommend a really reliable HRM? I'd prefer if it were strapless, and it showed me my calories as I burn them. Willing to pay up to $90.
I took the other one back after it consistently and completely reset itself and started to freeze up when I'd try to put all the statistics back in, so I'm looking for a new one.

staceyw37

trish, you can get strapless but everyone says they are not very accurate at all. so i'd hate to see you waste 50+ dollars.

i use the reebok xrt that i bought at buy.com for 29.99 and free shipping. i've had it for 7mon or so. i've had to replace the battery a cpl times--but i just buy it at walmart so it's no biggie. i'm VERY happy with it.

lots of ppl on the site use polar f6 or others. they are very committed to the polar line of products. maybe you could search out old posts and see what they like abt that brand. it is more expensive and must be sent to the factory for battery replacement. that being said, there are MANY loyal fans of the product on mfp.

good luck drinking your water today!!

staceyw37

jr--i love that lady bug idea! it is just so cute! i think i will need to use it for myself to stop yelling (and cussing). way better than star's or x's.

maybe will make a diff bug for my son--tho truthfully, he has the best, most easily managed behavior of the the 3.

later ladies--

DrBorkBork

Stacey, try a dragonfly, maybe? Dragonflies are awesome no matter what gender you are!

I was looking at the Polars, but wasn't sure which one to go for. With all the choices they have, it's kinda overwhelming.

jrbowers83

Aww I'm flattered that my little parenting tips come in handy to someone, especially some more seasoned moms :blushing: I loved doing the ladybug thing until my son outgrew it, and will def start it with my daughter in a year or so (I'm kinda partial to ladybugs if you couldn't tell by my tickers. My DD has tons of ladybug clothes, earrings, toys, etc. and her nickname is ladybug) Honestly, giving advice keeps me in my place remembering to practice what I preach. I had a crappy childhood, and vowed that if I didn't do anything else, I WOULD be a better parent than mine were. Ah, sorry for the drama, but that's just a touch of it. Stacey, believe me I only have 2 kids and feel like I yell all the time, so I'm sure it's harder with 3. But each day I try different things to yell less. I need to with my bp problems.

Trish, check out amazon.com. I did alot of my holiday shopping there found good deals and some had free shipping. Plus there are lots of reviews, so you can somewhat know before you buy. Good luck, hope you find an HRM that works for you. I know how frustrated you were there for a few days. Thanks as always for the water-drinking inspiration. Off to have some myself right now.

amypyr

I'm glad to find out I'm not the only mom who yells too much. The days I try other things instead of yelling are, of course, the better behavior days. But it gets hard at the end of the day when I'm tired too. I think bedtime is when I end up yelling the most (hurry up and get your toys picked up, stop playing in the bath, get your pajamas on, etc!). And that's the time I would prefer NOT to yell. I just don't feel right that just before the prayers, hugs, kisses & "I love you"s, there was yelling.

DrBorkBork

I had been looking around on Amazon, but was overwhelmed by all the choices. Finally I reined in my ADD brain and focused really hard on the reviews. I finally settled on a Polar F7 because someone said you can change the batteries yourself on it. It also has the features I wanted (I think, if I understood the features right), a 2 year factory warranty, and it even had a girlie design on the faceplate, lol. I'm not girlie, but I liked the design & it can pass as a wrist watch on a regular basis.
It will hopefully be here by next week.
Now to get some lunch in my belly, water down the pipes, and a workout in! The scale told me this morning that AF is packing up her things & going home till next month, so it's time to dig down deep & help her out the door and get those last few pounds off by tomorrow!

DrBorkBork

Here's your inspiration for the last day of the DECADE, girls! I got 90 oz of water down the hatch, resisted the urge to snack, burned off 350 calories in my wii workout, came in by 200 under my sodium (eating processed food, at that!), AND got my church duties done for the month.
Now, which of you would like to try & catch this runaway train? All of you? That's what I thought!
GIT 'ER DONE!!

As for New Years Eve, we are having PIZZA from a CHAIN, and I'm still going to be under my calories & sodium. Now stop shakin' in yer boots, because, darnit all, you're a SAHM, and SAHMS are MACHINES! You just never stopped to realize it. YOU CAN DO THIS!

debnu1

DrBorkBork, you made me smile. You are right we are machines, on occasion we have to get back on the track but then don't get in our way!

I love the ladybug idea, I think I am going to set something up like that for my daughter. I have tried to think of ways to do rewards but always get lost in the follow through.

I loved the book In praise of stay at home moms. It was very instrumental in the journey of my becoming one.

BTW I am a fluttering flybaby. I have gotten really good at my routines this week since I have been printing them out everynight with my food for the next day. I post it on the fridge. It is rather nice to have the day all planned out for myself.

I wish you all a very happy and healthy new year!

Hopey1994

[/quote]
btw--dr laura's newest book 'in praise of stay at home mom's' is a good read. it's nice to be validated for the choices we make. check it out from the library and see what YOU think.
[/quote]

thanks for the book recommendation. I'm def. going to look for it after I finish my current book (Boundaries for Kids).

amypyr

Good morning ladies! I hope everyone had a great night. Well, it is official now. My baby girl is no longer a baby. Samantha just had her first visit from the Tooth Fairy last night. She was so excited! She said eating her breakfast this morning felt weird without that tooth there. The one next to it is loose too, so I expect it won't be too long now before it comes out. It didn't have much "wiggle" room with the other one still in.

BTW, how many calories do you burn by shivering? It's so cold here!

clcrawley

Thank you for the kind and warm welcome, ladies! I'm still here, reading and lurking. You guys are an inspiration to me, to say the least. I'm especially impressed with all the water-drinking! LOL! I never used to drink water -- shameful, I know. But I've been getting in at least half my glasses, which is far from perfect, but I'll keep working at it.

My goals for myself are to get healthy and fit -- so I can chase my kiddos around without getting completely winded. I want to WANT to play physical games, outdoors. We went hiking last October, and it was a wake-up call.... I was so completely out of breath and out of shape, I couldn't keep up -- and I wanted to faint and/or throw up! Anyway, here are the stats:
Starting weight when I signed up on MFP: 185
CW: 182
GW: 140

Two of my sisters are also overweight, and we're starting this journey together. When we reach our goals, say summer-ish, we plan to take a trip to Hawaii together to visit our other sister as a reward! So I just think, every step of exercise is a step closer to the beach. :happy:

As for a goal in the new year, I, too, would like to yell less, hug more.

nicolee516

GM! I haven't really said much lately...it's been busy, but I have been watching!

You are not alone with the yelling too much! I do it too and it's been a work in progress. I totally understand, the frustration builds, and you don't know any other way to release it!

We have been working like crazy around the property because a neighbor thought he was "helping" us by tearing out blackberry bushes with his backhoe, which we never asked him to do, and he left a huge muddy mess! It is around the creek that runs through our property! UGH!!!!:mad: :explode: :devil: We will get it all worked out, but it is time that would could have spent on other projects. *sigh*:ohwell:

Happy New Year to all of you!:flowerforyou:

I am off to do day 3 of the 30 day shred. I am so sore!:laugh:

staceyw37

I'm glad to find out I'm not the only mom who yells too much. The days I try other things instead of yelling are, of course, the better behavior days. But it gets hard at the end of the day when I'm tired too. I think bedtime is when I end up yelling the most (hurry up and get your toys picked up, stop playing in the bath, get your pajamas on, etc!). And that's the time I would prefer NOT to yell. I just don't feel right that just before the prayers, hugs, kisses & "I love you"s, there was yelling.

((hugs)). amy i have a cpl suggestions--not that you asked...
#1 can you do the bath earlier--like before dinner or before toy pick up?
#2 on bath nights can you live with skipping toy pick up?
#3 can you use a kitchen timer to motivate them to beat the clock?
#4 do you have printed out charts/pics of the order of the night routine that you can post in many places and have them check off and keep moving? what's next ds? let's go! (if you need samples i can em you some i've done in powerpoint)
#4 can you give mini mini reward for finishing it all by x time? (like an extra book or song or 1 penny)
#5 can you do their baths on separate nights?
#6 can dh do the part that's most annoying for you? for ex--my dh does the teeth brushing when he's home; i hate that part.
#7 can you go backwards?--start with the snuggles and prayers and then the next etc--so you start with the most pleasant part to get it off to a good start
#8 sit them down and tell them the nightly routine has been unpleasant lately. can we come up with a new way? can you be on the team? make them part of the solution (or at least make them feel like they are)--we are constantly talking about being on the wolff team and teamwork is so important (espec when it's just mommy at home)
#9 can you put on motivating or calming music as you go thru this part of the day?
#10 can you start the whole process earlier so you don't feel as rushed? like rt after the table is cleared (wash up dishes later)?

well....i know that's a lot. but i can also "hear" that it saddens you to end the day with tension and yelling. (hugs) just to add another bit--my oldest is special needs. we'll leave it at that. in any case, EVERY night we'd have a big blow up and then there'd be the i'm sorry's and snuggles etc. so i sat her down and said that would you just like the snuggles? we don't have to do the fighting to get to the snuggles. we can just do the snuggles. that helped A LOT! so there is hope for you too!
try something--anything--and get back to us. we are here to support you in being a mommy who's healthy in all senses of the word!

staceyw37

Aww I'm flattered that my little parenting tips come in handy to someone, especially some more seasoned moms :blushing: I loved doing the ladybug thing until my son outgrew it, and will def start it with my daughter in a year or so (I'm kinda partial to ladybugs if you couldn't tell by my tickers. My DD has tons of ladybug clothes, earrings, toys, etc. and her nickname is ladybug) Honestly, giving advice keeps me in my place remembering to practice what I preach. I had a crappy childhood, and vowed that if I didn't do anything else, I WOULD be a better parent than mine were. Ah, sorry for the drama, but that's just a touch of it. Stacey, believe me I only have 2 kids and feel like I yell all the time, so I'm sure it's harder with 3. But each day I try different things to yell less. I need to with my bp problems.

**beautiful life goals. dr laura says something like you have 2 chances at childhood--the one you have when you are the child and the one you get to create for your own children.
that's cute that you're into ladybugs. i'm a HEARTS girl myself. and the editor of self magazine is a starfish girl. funny how diff things just speak to our souls.

staceyw37

deb--yay you! how great to spend the time the night BEFORE getting yourself focused. and putting on the fridge is very smart!
glad to find a fellow dr laura fan. i don't always agree with everything she says, but there is so much to be learned from her and her listeners.

you said abt follow thru. i can totally relate. that is my issue in all matters. i get so excited and pumped out but then peter out...

i do find that having this site is the BEST for me. even tho we aren't irl friends, i feel close to this group. and i feel like i can do more/better b/c of the people here.

staceyw37

yes, very chatty this am. can you tell i don't want to go to walmart???

trish--you CRACK ME UP! you go girl!!

crawley--lurk as much as you'd like. there's no rule that you have to chat it up.
nice goals btw. going to hawaii--how beautiful for you all. and that's great that you have your sisters working on this with you. i have found that having ppl who are obsessed as i am abt all these things makes the journey easier. increasing your water is a great start! you actually need lots of water to do the chemical process of metabolizing stored fat. so keep that in mind as you chug chug chug. you are allowing your body to flush out that fat!

nicolee--sorry abt the bushes. how frustrating! you're taking it in stride, tho. you always sound upbeat even with that hard hard work.

ok. i must drink water and get showered. i really do need to take care of the family and do my "chores."

jrbowers83

Hey Stacey. Hope you did make it to Walmart, and that it went better than my 2 hour fiasco the other day Sometimes you have to be chatty here to really catch up. We are all such busy ladies it seems. Thanks for all the warm thoughts about this group. There's something about writing out your life that can make you so much closer to a person than just someone you're around. Hope that made some sense. I've had no luck with friends/family support lately, but this place is brimming with it!

Nicolee-it's so funny cuz I was just thinking I hadn't seen you around in a bit. It sounds like you have so much to work on with your property, and now a little more. Yuck! Just remember, like this weight loss thing, to take it one day at a time, and that it's going to take alot of time. I'm interested to hear about the end results of all your numerous little projects. Good luck :flowerforyou:

Well, I just wanted to get some opinions. I am having trouble eating all of my calories lately. Every day this week I've been at a deficit (since the day after Christmas) of like 400 calories. I'm doing this to get healthy, and I def don't FEEL healthy. But I'm not sure what to do. I'm just not hungry by the end of the day, or I get addicted to my Wii Fit and burn a ton of calories, or last night I had a killer migraine all day, which makes me nauseous so didn't eat much and went to bed early. Any tips on filling, high calorie, healthy foods? Should I try drinking Ensure or something? I'm willing to listen to any opinions here, so bring it on!

DrBorkBork

I love Ensure. I have one almost every day. Do you want to trade? I would love to struggle with coming under my calories!

Archer Farms (Target's brand) makes a WONDERFUL cranberry cashew blend. It has 0 sodium, and will help you get your cals in. It's also got healthy fats and antioxidants. Just 1 cup of it will knock out over 500 of your calories! I dunno about you, but a cup is not very much in my book.
Bananas are good for calorie consumption too. A regular 8 inch banana is 121 cals. I often have 1 for breakfast. Fruits & veggies are your best bet for fillers, as they are the healthiest. I know no one who got fat chowing down on fruits, veggies, and unsalted nuts!

HTH

DrBorkBork

Well, I WAS under my sodium until I realized how unfulfilling the pizza we got from Papa Murphys was, so I had another slice. I know I could've made a better choice, but I didn't. Will not be getting them again. Our pizza is healthier, $5 cheaper, and 6 inches deeper with fresh veggies and yummies!