26 days & counting

Holy Wah!  Yes, I just had to put that popular Yooper phrase in there because I am in disbelief a little.  I can't even believe that I've only got about 26 days left to grow this baby.  I look forward to holding her in my arms & kissing her.  And I know the kids are excited & will be very helpful.  Yesterday I had an ultrasound to find out the baby's position. She's not breech, her head is down so we're just in the waiting game.  On the u/s we could see that she has some fuzzy hair.  Morgan thinks that she'll have red hair & eventually hazel eyes.  We could see that she'll have a cute button nose like the other 3.  I just <3 that button nose!  She's quite strong with her movement & has the hiccups often.  She's growing like crazy & I am looking forward to her arrival.  Adam & I are praying for her arrival to happen before March is over.  It would be perfect to have her back home with us & have a leisure week with the kids on Spring Break the first week of April & then enjoy her first Easter together.

Reflections: I wanted to actually make a few observations about things that I've noticed & why I never want to experience them again.  I'm not trying to complain but rather make a list, you all know how I love lists, to help me remember when I get discouraged about working to get fit, strong & in shape of all the things I'm leaving behind.  Perhaps you experience some of these same things & maybe you'll look at the things you can leave behind as incentives to eat clean & exercise.  My list is somewhat related to my pregnancy but honestly, I don't want to overeat & not exercise & have to deal with these things ever again.  I know that what I am doing right now by watching what I eat & resting as much as I can as I grow this baby is the best right now.  I know that gaining weight during pregnancy is inevitable no matter what I do & that I'm doing what is best for baby right now.  However, I'm preparing my mind for when I get the go ahead to exercise & give it my all.  I've tried putting myself in overweight & obese people's shoes to see what it feels like.  I know its not quite the same & I may never know exactly how they feel but I'm trying to be more understanding.  I've watched people at the store ride the scooters or have a really hard time walking & now that I'm slightly in that same boat, I have empathy for them.  And each person's situation is different but ya know what?  I'd love to help.  I'd love to see their mind set change & watch as their body changed too.

List of things to leave behind!
My feet hurt with the extra weight
My ankles, feet, & hands are swelling & I don't like the tight feeling
My legs feel tight from the extra weight on them.
It's hard to walk because of the extra weight
I find myself having to rest more often because my heart isn't as healthy as when it was conditioned by movement/exercise.
Hard to catch my breath from just walking up the stairs
Pain in my knees & legs from walking up stairs with added weight
My face looks & feels puffy
Exercise helps my skin stay clearer
I have to loosen my watch to continue to wear it comfortably
My clothes make me feel itchy where they are tight & feel constricting
I feel overly tired no matter how much sleep I get in a night or nap to get
I don't like feeling lazy & having to 'let go' of things that need to be done around the house
I want to gain some more of my independence back, such as being able to carry laundry baskets up from the basement so laundry doesn't sit for days on end, being able to climb a ladder, shovel, mow the yard, rake, etc without having to wait for someone else to do it
Having my hips out of place & my back hurting from the time I wake in the morning till I fall asleep at night
Needing to visit the chiropractor more frequently because the extra weight causes my hips, back & neck to go out
Headaches (I had pretty much gotten rid of them by drinking my Shakeology every day & exercising 5-6 days a week.)
Having the energy, time, desire to cook healthy meals for my family & keep the grocery/eating out bill down
Energy to play with my kids
Sitting on the floor without my legs falling asleep (within just a few minutes) due to poor circulation
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I could probably go on and on but I'll stop here.  Like I said, these are some things I've had to deal with while being pregnant & I plan to work on changing them all back into more positive things. I wanted to list as much as I could think of so that when I start being able to exercise, I won't want to take long breaks & ever turn back to the things I'm planning to leave behind.  I want to be healthy, strong, fit, & with plenty of energy. I want to be a good example to my family as well as others & I'd love to help people turn their lives around & get healthy & fit.

Now it's time for me to play Chutes & Ladders at the table with my 5 year old. And then I've got to finish up some things on the baby list.  Sew some more blankets & burp cloths for our little one.  Vacuum the van now that the outside is clean & add the infant carrier to it.  Wash the pack n play to see if we can still use it, get the laundry going, & make lunch soon.