A revelation of massive proportions.

I'm really struggling.  That's not some big secret.  Adalyn has been a high-needs baby mostly since birth, and 11 months of it has worn me thin.  

I've spent a lot of time whining and complaining and, honestly, feeling really sorry for myself.  Making myself a martyr is kind of lame, right?  I'm not the first mom to experience a fussy baby who has problems sleeping.  And I'm not the first mom to experience that with a toddler who also doesn't sleep.  In fact, in comparison to LOTS of other mothers' lives, I still have it easy.  

But I'm dense and sometimes selfish and I don't see that sort of stuff until it slams into my face going 100 miles an hour.  

This morning I was feeling particularly crummy and sorry for myself.  Adalyn now sleeps through the night but no longer naps and wakes up really early.  This morning it was 5:00 a.m.  And that's after never napping yesterday, which has pretty much become her new norm.  So I thought surely she would nap today, but she won't.  And I have a horrendous cold and I feel like an 18 wheeler ran over my head and then backed up a couple of times.

So I consulted Dr. Sears to see if he had any literature on his website regarding high-needs babies.  Turns out, he does.  A lot of it.  And it all said mostly the same thing: quit yer whining.

I was feeling all defensive about it, yelling out things in my head like, "Hey now!  I'm sleep deprived and pregnant and have a baby who cries all day!  I get to be upset and sad about that!" and almost quit reading all together until I came across this:

"Instead of feeling sorry for yourself that you didn't get enough sleep, just don't expect as much from yourself that day." 

Well, duh.  I suppose I could do that, too.  I have a wicked case of The Guilts and I am always feeling guilty for something.  If it's not my children's picky eating then it's that they don't sleep and that's my fault and that Adalyn cries and that's my fault and that the house is ALWAYS a mess and what a terrible housewife I am and so on and so forth.  I don't ever nap when Adalyn naps (er, when she used to nap) because there are things to be done, dangit!  What kind of wife am I if Tim has to come home to a messy house and no food on the table?!  

Which, er, happens more than I'd like to admit.  

But that little sentence hit me.  Instead of using my high-needs baby as a tool to allow myself to whine and feel sorry for myself all the time, I can use it as a tool to do what I need to do anyway: lose the guilt.

Yep, my baby cries a lot, still.  She sleeps like crap.  She is very needy and wants mommy or daddy almost all the time.  So it's okay if I take advantage of a nap time for myself and let the laundry slide.  It's okay if I make breakfast for dinner for the 3rd time in a week because it's easy and I'm wiped out.  It doesn't make me a bad mom or a bad wife.  Whining and feeling sorry for myself all the time?  That does.  

I'm going to cut myself some slack, accept that this is our life right now, but realize that because this is our life, I can make adjustments to my work schedule and feel totally okay about that.  That's how I'll be the best mommy I can be.  By cutting myself some slack and kicking my feet up sometimes.  Not by crying in my coffee.  

A lesson in judgments & a great awakening

That's me.  I fell asleep in the middle of laundry folding last night.  Right on the basket of laundry.  Slept that way for hours.  I laughed forever when the hubby shared this picture with me.  You see, I'm not one to fall asleep in random places.  In fact, I have a difficult time falling asleep in my own bed.  I'm also not one to fall asleep when I have a long to-do list or a messy house.  I usually stay up as late as it takes to get it all done.  But I was exhausted.  It was a busy weekend and I was drained physically and emotionally by 7:00 last night, when I threw my arms up in frustration and told Tim, through tears, that we were hiring a maid.

I used to think it was ridiculous that a SAHM would ever need the services of a housekeeper.  In fact, I used to be pretty judgmental about it.  That was before the days of having kids or staying home.  But God taught me a lesson in judgments and it really hit me over the weekend.

I'm kind of OCD.  Not in the true sense of the clinical definition, but I get extremely anxious and panicky if there is clutter in my house.  Having kids has been tough, because as any mom will tell you, clutter is 100% unavoidable when you have children.  Toys are inevitably strewn about the house, random sippy cups adorn bookshelves and pacifiers and burp rags line counters and furniture.

This weekend, I didn't have much time for cleaning or dishes or laundry.  I attempted to refinish a few dressers, spend a little time with my kids and hang out with a few friends while also volunteering at the church and helping out with a make-up launch party for a friend.  This was all TONS of fun and very rewarding, but it meant that at 5:00 last night, we had dishes in the sink, piles and piles of dirty laundry, no food in the fridge and a hot mess of a house, all while I was beyond exhausted.

If I want to have a social life, I can't keep a clean house every minute of every day.  If I want to spend time with my children, I can't keep a clean house every minute of every day.  If I want to help out where I'm needed, I can't keep a clean house every minute of every day.  If I want to enjoy life at all, I can't keep a clean house every minute of every day.  I need a social life, my children need me and I need to find enjoyment in things other than sparkling floors, clean toilets and a clutter-free, perfectly organized home.

I need to get over my idea that in order to be a "good wife," the house must be clean, dinner must be made and clean clothes must be available.  My husband doesn't care, so why do I?

Sometimes I'm going to fall asleep on the laundry basket and wake up on a Monday morning with a disaster of a house.  And you know what?  That's okay.  Some day I may decide (if I can ever fit it into our budget) that a housekeeper is necessary so that my children get the best of me.  And that's okay.  Someone looking in on my life may judge me for having a messy house or a maid, but that's also okay.  Because they won't know that I'm enjoying my life, enjoying my kids and helping others.

Cleaning out the ole life.

Whatever I'm going through right now, it's kind of like nesting in high gear.  I nested through both of my pregnancies, but neither time compared to whatever is going on inside my brain right now.  I am in "Must strip home and life of all things unnecessary" mode.  I've been a deep-cleaning fool this week, and that commenced with a quick stripping of any facebook friends I haven't talked to in months.  Nothing is safe!

Starting tomorrow, I'm back on my mom's diet (altered a little for extra nursing calories) and I'm stripping my body of the ULTIMATE unnecessary item: this stupid baby weight.  I just keep gaining weight now.  This happened with Ben, too.  I lost a bunch of weight right away, and then it was stall city.  And then, after a few months, the scale just went up and up.  That is not happening this time.  I won't look back on pictures from Adalyn's first birthday party and bemoan the fact that I was so fat.  Peace out, love handles.

Oh, and happy St. Patty's Day (and the start of the NCAA tourney)!  Adalyn successfully managed to represent her hawks AND keep herself from getting pinched.  If anyone would pinch a newborn.

You're two months old, baby girl!

It's so hard to believe that it was already two full months ago that I welcomed my little sweet pea into the world.  Time flies by too quickly once you have kids.  I want to stop time so badly. But at the same time, I adore watching Adalyn grow and change and develop into a person.  It's an internal struggle, for sure.  Stop growing...but keep growing!

Things have changed a lot since last month.  Adalyn coos and smiles and really interacts with us.  She stands pretty well if we hold her arms.  She likes to sit up and take in the world around her.  She especially smiles for her daddy.  He makes silly noises and she stares at him so intently, her face lighting up into one gorgeous little smile.  Her fussiness seems to get better every single day, though we occasionally have set-backs.  She's becoming a little girl, slowly but surely!

As for looks, she is definitely developing her own look, rather than looking like Ben's twin (though she still does look so much like him).  Just like Ben, she has lost almost all of her hair.  She has the cutest little nose and the chubbiest cheeks!  Maybe she'll be my chunky one?







  

What do you get...

...when you combine:

One sick toddler with a hole in his lip from falling and busting it open:



+

One baby who doesn't seem to like anything but an Ergo or a sling and a mama with a bad back:





+

An entire green smoothie poured onto the kitchen table and wood floors.

+

Mommy's entire water bottle dumped over on the wood floors.

?

Someone desperate for the weekend, otherwise known as "the time Daddy comes home and relieves Mommy for a couple of days."

Is it 5:00 yet?

PS - Okay, I suppose these few moments of peaceful serenity, when Adalyn is happy and I can just stare at this pretty face for a few minutes, make all the spilled drinks and piercing cries totally, 100% worth it.

Why our children remain nameless until birth

My Christmas cards arrived via Shutterfly!



You're looking at seven different varieties of Christmas cards. Yep, SEVEN. Because I couldn't narrow them down to even three or four, I had to go with seven. And even that was really difficult. I started out with 18 designs in my cart.

This is why our children remain nameless until I'm forced to decide by impatient hospital staff waving birth certificates in my face. So far, I think our little girl has had 29 potential names. Now, our "final list" is five names long. And sure to change.


"Would you just decide already, Mom? Your indecisiveness is really wearing on me!"

From the land of the sleepless.

Well, I suppose you can expect more posts from me as we enter into the days of extreme pregnancy insomnia. That's okay, though, because after snuggling with a brand new baby a few days ago, I remember why all of this misery is more than worth it.

My old college roommate and dear friend had her baby boy a few days ago. I'd originally planned on waiting a month and letting them get settled in before we loaded the family up to visit, but since it's a four hour drive and I'm already dilated and HUGE and MISERABLE, I decided sooner is better. I made the trip alone, kissed and cuddled this absolutely precious and gorgeous baby boy and then enjoyed an evening all alone in a hotel room. Shhhh. Don't tell anyone that I actually enjoyed myself. Moms aren't supposed to admit that, right?

Today we had a family photo shoot done by an awesome little chica named Whitney. She's a new mommy, too, and we used to work together...until we both decided parenthood trumps work and bid that place adieu. She runs Whitney Leigh Photography and we had a ball with her today on my old stomping grounds at the University of Kansas. All was going well until we heard a panicked cry and look over in the middle of a picture to find Ben waist-deep in the ice cold lake and clinging onto the ground of the shore for dear life. Eek! A kiss, some wiped tears and an outfit change patched things up and now we can totally laugh about it for years to come. Whitney even snapped some pictures of the aftermath for memories sake. I'll post some of them when I get the high resolution pictures next week.

Not much else to report that wouldn't bore your socks off, so I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Um? He insisted on the shoes and the thermometer I'm not entirely sure about. Delish?

Haircut from Daddy! We frugal like that.

31 weeks and counting. It really blows my mind how I've fit all the old wives' tales in this pregnancy. I carry this girl so much higher than I carried Ben! Last laugh will be on me when SHE ends up coming out a HE, right? I don't know why, but I can't shake the feeling that that's going to happen!

Halloween recap and fingers crossed for another early (but not TOO early) labor!

Halloween was a blast! We took part in several festive activities, starting with a trip to Missouri to hang out with our friends and attend a Halloween-themed library storytime. In true Chelsea form, I had my camera on me the whole time but forgot to snap a single picture. So you'll just have to take my word for it. Following that theme, a few days later I'm getting Ben ready for our playgroup's Trunk-or-Treat event when I realize that half of Ben's adorable monkey costume has mysteriously gone missing. A few frantic texts later and I realize it's in Missouri. Brilliant Mommy left half of my son's costume out-of-town!

Enter a friend to the rescue! Ben sported a bear costume, complete with pink bow, loaned to us by a great friend. He then busted his head open and that same friend rescued us again with a pink Hello Kitty band-aid. Hey, we have no shame in this house! Nothing wrong with a little pink action for my son. Trunk-or-Treat was great! Everyone decorated their trunks and the kids went from car to car collecting candy and unleashing some pre-bedtime energy. Because I just can't seem to get things right, I of course forgot the camera for this event but managed to snap one semi-decent picture with my phone.

Sunday night we sat by the window, waiting anxiously for the first trick-or-treaters to make their appearance on our sidewalks. Hey, we're new to this, we don't know what we're doing and we didn't want to be the first ones out and about! And it's a good thing we waited, because we thought 5:30 was a good trick-or-treat time. Turns out we were way wrong. It was close to 7:00 before people hit the streets. So off we went. It took Ben a little time to warm up to the idea, but once he realized that he could go up to someone's door, mumble "trckerhumphjasdf" and they'd give him candy, his eyes lit up.

It also turns out that Ben inherited my love of all things chocolate. Totally unsure of his costume at first, once we bribed him with a Kit-Kat he was all smiles. He may look nothing like me, but he has my good taste!

In other news, yesterday was my 29 week check-up! It's hard to believe we're already here, at the appointment-every-two-weeks mark. Soon we'll be down to weekly! Everything looks fine and the appointment was as boring as ever, but I did get some half exciting/half nerve-racking news. Monday night I had some intense contractions. Nothing like a braxton hicks but everything like my real labor contractions with Ben. They lasted a few hours but never got regular so I brushed them off. My OB decided to check me yesterday and announced that I was 1 cm dilated. She said it's not concerning since this is my second and I was early with my first. She also said my cervix is still thick, which is the most telling. So I'm trusting her on that and keeping my fingers crossed that this means she'll be a little early like her brother and it'll be another quick (albeit PAINFUL) labor.

Finally, I think I did a million of these little belly slideshows during my pregnancy with Ben. I guess the second time around, you just slack more, huh?

Am I going to survive motherhood?

Aye, aye, aye. I find it really annoying when people go on and on and on about all the crap in their lives without ever focusing on positives. Lately, though, I feel like I've been doing just that. And I hate it, but now I get it. Sometimes you just want some old fashioned sympathy. You just want someone else to say, "Wow, that's tough. I'm sorry."

The past few weeks have been nothing short of miserable. I've been getting extreeeeemely uncomfortable and I'm only 27 weeks pregnant, ya'll. I absolutely didn't hit this point with Ben until much, much later.

Then there's the whole insomnia issue. Seems that while I was spared of it with my first pregnancy, I didn't get so lucky this time around (I was spared of lots of things the first time around that I've had to deal with this time, as a matter of fact). I wake up every two hours to pee and it takes me a good 20 to 30 minutes to get back to sleep at the earliest. TORTURE, I tell you. Because an hour and a half later, I'm up again. Oh, and then there's that pesky little my-child-wouldn't-sleep-if-his-life-depended-on-it thing going on, too. Once I get up with him, that's it. I'm done. There's no hope that I can fall back asleep again.

Then there's the illness factor. I don't know WHAT is up, but yours truly, the one who rarely gets sick, is always sick now. Let's see, at 7 months pregnant I've been sick eight times. That's not right. Last week a stomach bug ravaged our house and left Tim, Ben and I in its dust. We were sick as dogs. I lost eight pounds in two days! This week? Why yes, this week we're sick again. Now we have colds. Wait, didn't I just get over a cold? Ah, that's right. A month ago! Does it ever end?

Tim went out of town on another business trip this week, and as comically as ever, of course the world caved in (let's see, in the past it's been a flooded basement, sewer back-up in the laundry room, etc., etc., etc.). Ben had a particularly rough night on Monday that left me with a grand total of one hour of sleep. I wiped the sleep outta my eyes and put on my big girl pants. I had my glucose test for gestational diabetes, so I packed the kiddo and I up and decided to brave a blood draw with a toddler all by myself. It couldn't be that bad, right? Ha! I'm being punished. My karma is bad, folks. I sit down, pale-faced and queasy thanks to a disgustingly sweet "lemon-lime" drink and no breakfast, get my arm all rubber-banded up and Ben starts throwing a fit. Okay, doable. I can handle a fit during a 10 second blood draw. Only I kept bleeding. And bleeding. And bleeding. The chick is finally like, "Weird, you must be a bleeder, huh?" Why, no. No one has ever called me a bleeder before, but thanks? Five miserable minutes later, drowned out by toddler screams, I hear the nurse say, "Okay, I think it's stopped. You can go now." FINALLY. I stand up, the room spins and I know this is going to end badly. But I chug along, start walking back to the doctor's room and SPLAT. My legs give out, everything turns black and I go kaput. I guess I was only out for a second, but it was utterly humiliating. They pump me full of grape juice and cheese crackers and send me on my merry way.

God gets me home safe and sound, albeit emotionally drained, and I just bawl. Like a little tiny baby. Then I beg Tim to please just come home and never go on another business trip again.

To make a painfully long story a little shorter, I start getting sick in the afternoon, muster up enough energy to make it through the day until Tim gets home at night, and then listen to Ben cry until 10:30 last night. I don't sleep yet again because this cold is kicking my arse and then Ben decides to protest his nap today after waking up at 6:30 this morning.

Lord help me.

It's so hot outside!

I mean really, it's unbearable. Heat indexes in the 109s+ scare me. And that's what we've been dealing with. AND I'M PREGNANT. I went to visit an old college roomie over the weekend in Oklahoma. I didn't think it could get any hotter than it's been in Kansas, but apparently it can. We skipped out on the baseball game we'd planned in lieu of putting on jammies, popping open some sparkling grape juice (she's preggo, too!) and watching chick flicks. I must say, it was an awesome weekend.

For those who asked, here's the newest belly picture. I had such great ambitions for doing a weekly picture in the same spot in the same outfit but, well, it hasn't happened. Maybe this week will be the week? Ha, unlikely. 14 weeks and counting! Did I ever mention we're staying on team green? Well we are. And now it's KILLING ME. I keep thinking how we found out with Ben at 15 weeks and that's only one week away! I could know in one week! Oh, the torture.


I think I've shrunk since 12 weeks?

In other news, I'm apparently fantastic at making manly men. Exhibit A (and this was NOT staged, believe it or not):



Do you think I could be as good at making girly girls? We shall see. Sometime in...oh, January. :(

I almost forgot! We got to see the bean in the belly last week! I'll spare you all the details of our TERRIBLE appointment with the most unprofessional ultrasound tech I've ever dealt with in favor of the mushy stuff. The baby picture! S/He still looks pretty ghost-ish, but cute, right? ;)

Happy 4th!

Popping on really quickly to say Happy 4th of July to everyone! It's been a whirlwind weekend for us. Yesterday began at 5:45 a.m. since Tim wanted to run a local race. He placed 42nd out of 1500 which is pretty incredible and 4th in his age bracket, earning him an award! Way to go, babes!

Then we made it to our city's parade which proved to be one gigantic advertisement for local politicians and stores. It was kind of annoying but lesson learned. Then it was lunch & naps for all, followed by some old fashioned popcorn making (Popcorn! On a stove! Who knew?) and a stupid comedy movie to appease Tim. Oh, and then let's not forget about our flooded laundry room that we discovered at 11:00 last night. Man, I love home ownership.

Today's been church, lunch and some more lounging and tonight we're off to see FIREWORKS! Let's just hope my child can handle staying up 'til 11:00 tonight. It's never happened before!

For those who asked, behold the monster belly. No need to tell me, I'm already aware that "it might be twins!" or "man you're huge!" Thanks. Somewhere between 10 weeks and 12, my baby exploded in size.

Just about 12 weeks pregnant, if you can believe it!

Life is getting back to normal and for that, I am so thankful. My morning sickness is lingering just a little bit, trying desperately to hold on, but overall I'd say life. is. good. I can make it through most of the day without having to lay down to stop the room from spinning. It's mostly just nights that are rough now, but a lot of that is due to exhaustion. By 6:00, I am DONE. Luckily my amazing hubby is more than happy to come home and take over full baby duty, so that's really helped.

Folks, we're almost in the second trimester! I can't believe it! It's going by fast, but this monstrous belly I'm already sporting isn't letting me forget that there's a baby cooking inside me. Some days my mind spins as I try to imagine what it will be like to have two, but I'm excited enough that those moments are fleeting and mostly followed with, "Who cares if it's crazy?! I get another little baby to caress and love and smoosh and kiss!"

In other news, we've found a church that we're pretty sure we'll call home and Ben and I finally jumped into a daytime playgroup that we love! Besides him being known as "the kid who snoops through everyone's diaper bags for sippies," I'd call it a success. Ben gets to socialize and maybe he'll learn the meaning of "share." That's doubtful, but a girl can hope. I counted four sippy cups I had to pull from his mouth today, and none of them were his. Eek!

Sharing makes friends, Ben.

A father's day goodie!

Now I can elaborate a bit on my last post. On Mother's Day, while in South Carolina, we found out that we're expecting baby #2 on January 16, 2011. We thought it was only fitting to spread the news on Father's Day! And yes, I guess I just make Winter babies. If it holds true for me that each subsequent baby comes earlier than the last, this might end up being another Christmas baby. :/

This pregnancy has already been completely different than the last, at least from my memory (which isn't saying much). I've been sick as a D-O-G. The sight of a vegetable leaves me running for the bathroom and the idea of getting off the couch is pretty much laughable. So my blog suffered and I can't promise it won't continue to suffer until I can break myself out of this pregnancy funk! Making Ben lunch takes so much of my energy that I need a nap afterward. Seriously. I'm a bum these days. But we're SO excited! Baby makin' is FUN!

PS - I'm finally getting the redesign rolled out. There's still some stuff to be done, but thanks to Becca for her help with my header!

Hello from Hilton Head Island!

Excuses.

Do you see that? That's where I'm headed. In three little ole' days, my family and I hit the road and head to the beautiful Hilton Head Island. We're meeting up with another family (hey, Jenna!) and hanging out in side-by-side condos where we will undoubtedly sunburn, drink too much wine (after the babies are in bed, of course) and sleep in. All to the sound of the lulling ocean in the background.

In other words, I have a lot to do and a very small window of time in which to get it done before we leave, so the remaining parts of my "Roughin' It Old School" series are going to have to wait. I'm trying really hard to get the diet info up before I leave, but, well, I don't really have an excuse (but I promise I'm really trying!). Thank you so much for being patient with me and to everyone who sent me an e-mail regarding the diet whom I haven't e-mailed back yet: I'm sorry! Life's been non-step hectic for a bit now. I promise to have it up the moment I can. How's that? ;)

Hope everyone's enjoying Summer!

Bread is the enemy.

I was going to write this awesome blog post about how I discovered that store-bought bread is evil and in no way nourishing and that sprouting grains to grind into flour to soak overnight with an acid to knead yourself and then turn into bread is really the way to go. I was going to. But then my friend Jenna wrote a blog post that almost made me pee my pants outlining just how ridiculous all this is getting. I would have to agree that 22 hour bread is pushing my limits.

It's a whole series, in fact, and it's very much worth reading. Start here, then go here and here. You're welcome. She's hilarious.

I'm still making my own toothpaste, though. Just sayin'.

Saving money & living better while roughin' it old school: Part III

Let's continue on, shall we?

Homemade Toothpaste

This is probably the first DIY project I completed that left me feeling like super woman. I was like, "Dude, I just made our own toothpaste." Awesome, right? And EASY. I started following the blog Clean several months ago after stumbling upon her toothpaste recipe. She's also the maker of LuSa Organics products - organic goodies for little ones.

Anyway, her recipe seemed simple enough and I loved how it cleared up her daughter's ECC (early childhood caries). Ben's already chipped two teeth and I'm a little concerned about what that means in the long run. Plus, who doesn't want to know exactly what's in their toothpaste and save money? The recipe calls for a few ingredients that I had no problem finding at my local Whole Foods. My only complaint is the hint of a soap taste, but it's minor enough that I can live with it. Plus, both my husband and I were amazed by how clean our teeth felt after our first brushing. Seriously, I felt like I'd just stepped out of the dentist's office without having to go through the torture that is the dentist's office. No need to re-state what she already laid out, so be sure to check it out here.

Moisturizer/Body Scrub

I like to exfoliate when I can (read: when my child isn't on napstrike) because I have really, really dry skin. So maybe you're not a body scrub type of person, but if so, here's a great recipe courtesy of Keeper of the Home (who, by the way, has an amazing blog).

Body Scrub: Brown Sugar, Honey and Organic Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1-1/2 cups Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/8 cup local, raw Honey
1/4 teaspoon of desired scent options: Homemade Pure Vanilla Extract, Lemon Juice, Lavender essential oil, Fresh ground coffee, Cinnamon or Clove
In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together to form a paste. Add scent if you would like to, but it is not necessary. Store body scrub in a sealed container in your shower or by the sink. No need to refrigerate. To use, scoop some into the palm of your hand and massage skin as needed.
Moisturizer: Believe it or not, coconut oil is fantastic! This was the very first beauty product I replaced and it kind of happened on accident. I started using coconut oil after my friend, Melissa, raved and raved about it. I used it on Ben's diaper area and on his face rash and it really helped - much better than Aquaphor ever did. So one day I slathered some on my arms and POOF: silky skin. As a bonus, it's so deliciously divine smelling that I sometimes want to eat my arm off. I've heard several woman rave about extra virgin olive oil, too, but I love me some coconut so I stick with that. It's nature's moisturizer (and you can use it on your face, too!). If oil isn't your thing, you might want to check out Brambleberry, though I don't know that you'll save any money going this route. But hey, at least you'll have the brag factor of making your own lotion and you'll know what goes in it.

Lip Balm
The greatest lip balm EVER (seriously) is straight lanolin. Do you remember using lanolin for a certain, hm, ailment you had while breastfeeding? Another product with multiple uses! And the cool thing about lanolin is that it lasts forever. Just squeeze a teeny bit on your lips to do the job. I've had my tube of lanolin since Ben was born and I think I still have at least half the tube left, if not more. A much more natural solution to moisturizing chapped lips.
Another option is this recipe I found but haven't tried yet, also from Keeper of the Home: Mix ¼ c grated beeswax, 2 Tbsp cocoa butter, 3 Tbsp coconut oil and 1 Tbsp almond oil together over low heat. Pour into small containers.

Make-up remover

I touched on this while explaining the oil cleansing method, but use EVOO as a make-up remover. Works like a charm!

Shaving cream

Maybe this sounds nuts, but there is no need for shaving cream. EARTH. SHATTERING. Here's a tip: exfoliate your legs with the homemade body scrub first, then lather them up with some bar soap and poof: you've just eliminated the need for one more beauty product in your tub. Girl scout's honor.
What are some homemade recipes you use for beauty products? Am I missing some good ones?
Stay tuned for the cloth discussion up next...

Fatty McFaterson

I've talked about being fat quite a lot, so it should come as no surprise that I'm going to take a whole blog post to talk about fat (and now a lack thereof). Mostly this post is just a gigantic thank you card for my mom, who, on a recent trip to see her in South Carolina, taught me how to finally get rid of my baby weight once and for all. Can you even call it baby weight come your child's first birthday?

My mom spent most of her adult life carrying some extra pounds. Then I told her I was pregnant, and I suppose the realization that she was about to become a grandma really shifted things around in her brain. Suddenly, she was shedding weight like nobody's business. She was running an hour a day, weight lifting, eating healthy and so on. Within a few short months, she shed over 50 pounds. Wow! She looked amazing! As awesome as it was, it was a blow to my ego when she came to visit me in the hospital after having Ben and pictures were taken that looked like this:

I mean, look at me! She was so skinny that she took my disgusting cow status up ten notches. I remember vowing, while flipping through those pictures, that I was going to lose that baby weight faster than anyone had ever lost it before! By Ben's one week birthday, I think I'd lost 30 of the 40 pounds I'd gained. The problem? I was DIETING. WHILE BREASTFEEDING. I was a humongous idiot, desperate to get back to my pre-baby weight. That resulted in some issues in the milk supply department for which I have always been so upset with myself. So as quickly as I'd started the diet, I stopped. I wanted to provide for my child first and foremost, and even though I was doing the Weight Watchers nursing mothers program, it was clear that I was doing it way too early. So I stayed fat.

Months and months (and months and months and months) went by after that, and my weight didn't budge. I was up a good ten pounds from pre-baby weight and was really doing nothing about it. I said I was, but I was scarfing down oreos all the while. And then all the non-dieting caught up with me and I was suddenly up SEVENTEEN pounds from pre-baby weight.

I had to go out and buy new, bigger pants. Yikes. A quick stint on Weight Watchers and I lost those extra seven pounds in time for Ben's first birthday party. I thought I looked pretty good until the pictures surfaced.

As I so often do, I said I was going on a diet and I was going to finally kiss those ten pounds goodbye. But yet again, another three months went by with barely a budge. And then I went to visit my mom.

She put me on her plan: I figure my daily caloric expenditure using this calculator and choosing "sedentary", then I add the 500-600 calories I burn off in exercise. I then shoot for 70 to 80 percent of that number. Every fourth day I shoot for 90% of that number to avoid plateauing. Of those calories, I stick to a ratio of 15% fat to 55% carbs to 30% protein. It sounds confusing, but she whipped me up a spreadsheet and it was a piece of cake. The best part of this diet is that because you're consuming so many calories (I shoot for about 1500 per day), the weight is lost in a healthy way and, therefore, stays off.

Suddenly, I was losing weight at warp speed. Thirteen pounds later and I now fit into my skinny shorts! I weigh less than I have since HIGH SCHOOL. How rad is that?!

And now, please forgive me for a quick moment of bragging. I hate bragging, but I'm so proud to finally be here and be happy with me! And just in time for our beach trip in a few short weeks.

Hello, 120s! My, how I've missed you. And thanks, mama!