Getting This Food Under Control

Fun fact of the day: the incredibly delicious Panera cupcakes have 520 calories in them.  That's right.  Five. Hundred. Twenty.  FIVE HUNDRED TWENTY!!!

I had cut out the carbs and sugar, and while my weight dropped, I got very sick.  More than withdraw, the headaches, body aches, and confusion went on for more than a month.  I'm still breastfeeding, so I have no idea what my body really needs until it makes me eat it.  So, I started eating some lasagna and peanut butter cups.  I got ill from some bad salad a couple of months ago and then stopped taking it to work, so I was confused with what healthy foods I should fill the cracks in my appetite.  I'm pulling teeth to just try to make it through with the little sleep that I get, so I don't have time to be sick.

I gave up on waiting for the weight to come off before shopping for clothes.  I went out and bought a new work wardrobe, none of which was a size larger than I was before pregnancy.

Then, I noticed that I unintentionally stopped eating meat and my weight started to balloon.  Between the easy-to-make cheese lasagna and the broccoli cheese soup at the brand new Panera, I wasn't being the carnivore I know I am.  I went from 168 lbs to 176 lbs really fast.  It was horrible.  None of my new pants fit last week!  Mind you, I was 150 lbs when I got pregnant and gave birth at at least 190 lbs.   I cut down my calories to 2,000 or less per day,.  Before, I was eating probably 3,000 to 4,000 and maintaining a good weight for awhile. But, even at under 2,000 calories per day, I was still gaining weight!

I remembered that I started loosing weight when I was eating meat and veggies for lunch and dinner.  I thought it was the sugar and grains that were causing the stagnation.  Last week, I ate several Indian dinners with naan (bread).  Lots of bread, actually.  And, I started loosing weight again!  By eating meat and veggies, I had also inadvertently cut out dairy, too.  The baby and I also cut dairy out last week to see if that would reduce her night wakings.  She is certainly sleeping better.  And, even though I have no idea how many calories I'm eating, the weight is still dropping.  It's at least under control.

I also cut down on the coffee I was drinking, because I read where one lady said she couldn't even drink decaf after noon without her breastfed child being up all night.  I think Lily's really a lot happier now.  We don't know what is going on with her nap schedule.  Some days, she'll take two naps, but other days, it's just one.  I am not sick by not eating much grain or sugar now, so I think that the large quality of coffee I was drinking to make it through all of the sleepless nights (that was causing some sleepless nights) required a larger amount of grains and sugar to deal. 

Even at 2,000 calories or less per day, I couldn't loose weight when I was eating lots of dairy.   How incredible.  I would not have thought it mattered as much what I ate as long as I didn't eat too much.

Cedar Oil for Lawn Treatment

We had been held hostage in our house and away from the yard this whole summer.  The mosquitoes were horrendous.  They were relentless.  And, no matter what Sean did, they left painful quarter-sized welts all over his body.  Apparently, these were African tiger mosquitoes, or something like that.  We tried to make mosquito traps using carbon dioxide to lure them in, but those failed to catch much of anything.  We then bought two insect lamps with mosquito-attracting pheromones, and those seem to work well.  But, they have a limit to how affective they are.

It was killer, because we couldn't just lay in the yard on a blanket with the baby.  Oh, she would have loved it.  Sean and I both grew up in the middle of nowhere and made the forest our home. I remember the countless days where I would curl up in our yard on a blanket while dozing off and watching the clouds float by.  We have a bigger yard and more green space that we would have ever thought living in this city.  But, because we were not willing to spray chemicals on the lawn, we couldn't use it.  My mom mentioned to me that everyone in Ohio uses Chemlawn.  I didn't realize until just a few weeks ago that our lawn growing up was treated with chemicals.  Of course, it makes sense now.  There were never any bugs.  Just fireflies. 

During our visit to Texas, we saw a sign for Cedarcide, an organic lawn treatment. Sean looked it up, and it was for sure not just another chemical treatment masquerading as something natural. It was a cedar oil mixture.

When I saw a brown recluse near the side of the house, I knew that we needed to do something.  Baby girl could have so easily come into contact with it while romping around the yard.  I was ready to just have them come spray the lawn.  For most people, that's okay.  We played in sprayed yards growing up, and we ended up fine.  Lots of people do.  But, for us crazy people who spend a good deal of time, money, and energy trying so hard to minimize the chemicals in their lives, this seemed like a huge deal.  It was a question.  Do you want chemicals or do you not want chemicals?  It was maddening. Of course we don't want chemicals.  We wanted to use the yard!

Sean reminded me about Cedarcide, and after milling over the price, we eventually made the leap.  Someone mentioned that having a company come out to spray the yard would be much more expensive.  It was about $80 for one small bottle.  I had been worried we had just paid $80 for two small treatments and that we would need a new bottle before we got rid of the bugs, but that was not the case.  It contains eight treatments, but the instructions say to use 8 oz for the first treatment.   My mom sprayed the yard and commented that she had enough in the bottle to soak the yard three times.

I was really happy with it.  We had a bonfire for her birthday and there weren't any bugs.  

Toddler Art Class

We've been hitting up this toddler art class from time to time.  Though creating art on paper isn't something Lily is able to really grasp at a year, the whole activity is very engaging.  There is a central activity, such chalk dipped in tempura paint or dipping cars into paint and driving them on paper (I know, cool, right?).  Additionally, the kids can use crayons, markers, or colored pencils at another station.  At a third area, there are toys and books to play with, as well as comfy chairs for parents to sit in.  And, there is coffee to boot.  It is definitely an activity with forethought. 

The first time Lily interacted with a medium on paper to make art!

First Birthday

 

 

Starting to decorate

decorating cupcakes

 

 

daddy and birthday girl selfie

teething baby

first bonfire awake

 

fairy beanie

hanging on the porth with my mom and dad

walking with Sean's mom

tex mex night

National Arboretum