Lyric's First Christmas

Can you believe it's almost 2012??  Crazy.  This year positively flew by, especially the past three months.  There's nothing that can make time go at warp speed like a baby.  It's amazing how fast she's growing.

We had a nice and peaceful Christmas Eve at home.  We split a bottle of champagne after Lyric went to bed and Dave grilled some pork chops and roasted potatoes while I made the best roasted broccoli ever.  (Recipe coming soon.)

Christmas Day we had plans to have dinner with our neighbors but their daughter got the stomach flu.  Rather than expose ourselves to that, we crashed our friends' house and they graciously set two extra seats at their already full table and made us feel at home.  It was a last-minute impromptu meal but we all had a great time!

We didn't spoil Lyric too much this year since she's so little.  I got her a new toy and her grandma and grandpa sent her a hat, a festive headband and a gift certificate.  Perfect for baby's first Christmas!

Happy Holidays!!

Modern Lace New Year's

Turn family photos into holiday cards at Shutterfly.com.

View the entire collection of cards.

What I Ate Wednesday

Ever since I started scheduling my weekdays, life has been a lot easier.  I know when I can get a chance to eat, when I can start laundry, sweeping, vacuuming, etc.  It's really nice.  The chaos of having a newborn has slowly evaporated and now we have a fun-loving, smiling infant to spend our days with.  Three months is my favorite age so far - it just keeps getting better!

After a happy wakeup at 5:30 am I played with Lyric for a while, changed her diaper (got peed on - twice) and changed her pee-soaked clothes.  I figured she wasn't up for good so I fed her around 6:00 and then put her back down where she slept until 8:00.

Dave and I got up, made some decaf coffee and he played with Lyric while I dressed and washed my face.  Then we had tummy time while he ate breakfast and left for work.  After a little bit of playtime she was ready for a nap.  I took the opportunity to make some breakfast for myself.

Breakfast burrito with cheddar cheese, eggs, potatoes, peppers, onions and mushrooms.

Now that the 30-day Home Workout Challenge is over I can officially eat sweets again. These have been staring me in the face ever since last weekend.  Chocolate never tasted so good.

Unfortunately, while the 30 day program might be over, I am still only on Day 20 of the workouts.  I took a few too many rest days but I'm still going to finish the workouts.

Lunch was small but satisfying - roasted garbanzo beans (I hate the term chickpea) and an apple with almond butter.

I snacked on some granola with almond milk and more chocolate during her afternoon nap time.

Baby girl woke up around 3:30 and it was all I could do to keep her happy and awake until about 5:45 when I took her upstairs, put her in her pj's and put her to bed.  I think she's going through her 3 month growth spurt because she's getting hungry more often during the day and it seems to be wearing her out.  Hope it goes back to normal soon.

After she fell asleep around 6:00 pm I snacked on the rest of the roasted garbanzo beans.

Then, after pumping I grabbed a small glass of wine and started on dinner.

Leftover chicken enchiladas, broccoli, cauliflower and roasted butternut squash.

The rest of the evening was spent on the couch with my hubby sipping wine and eating another (couple) chocolates.  Get these temptations out of my house!

Why I Love Breastfeeding

There are so many benefits to feeding your baby breastmilk and I'm not going to rant on about how good it is for your child and his/her immunity and health, etc.  Those are all amazing benefits, yes, but I know that formula fed babies are happy and healthy as well.  Every mom does the best she can for her child.  This is a judgement-free post!

Ready to eat, Mom!

What I'm talking about is why breastfeeding works for me.

1. It helped shed the baby weight - I gained 25 pounds with this pregnancy and I lost 20 of that in the hospital.  But the rest of it just fell right off.  I was back in my pre-pregnancy jeans just 5 days after giving birth.
2. Convenience - In the middle of the night I just unclip my nursing tank and feed Lyric before she can fully wake herself up.  If I had to prepare a bottle?  She would be hysterical by the time I had it ready for her.  In public it's just so easy to throw on my nursing cover and feed her wherever we are.  No worrying about bottles to clean, hot water or accidentally spilling her food (I'm a klutz remember?).
3. Bonding - Even though those middle of the night feedings interrupted my sleep, they were (and still are) my very favorite times with my daughter.  She's cuddly and sleepy and I love the way her little body curls around mine and her hand finds a spot to rest on my chest. <3
4. It's FREE - nuff said.
5. Incentive to watch what I eat - I know I feel better eating healthy foods but that doesn't always keep me from going overboard with the sweets.  The knowledge that what I'm eating helps make nutritious milk makes me think twice before I have a plate of cookies for dinner.
6. BUT I can eat like I'm still pregnant! -  Breastfeeding torches calories (about 500/day) and I can definitely tell that my hunger levels are still in overdrive.  I love it - when I was pregnant and super hungry I never worried about the weight gain because it was 'for the baby'.  Well, now that I'm breastfeeding it's the same way.  I'm going to miss being able to eat those extra calories!
7. Appreciation for my body - I still can't believe I made a person.  I grew and nourished Lyric for 9 months and my body still continues to produce the perfect food for her to grow big and strong.  Whenever women talk about being super anxious/nervous about their ability to give birth or to breastfeed I always tell them their body was made for it.  Just have faith, relax and let nature take it's course.  If it works, it works - if it doesn't, it doesn't but it's truly amazing what the female body can do.

Any other nursing moms have something to add?  I'd love to hear from you.

Three. Months. Old.

One. Month. Old.
Two. Months. Old.

Three Months Old!

 Nicknames:

• Sweet Pea, Ladybug, Munchkin, Little Bean, Darlin' and Baby Girl

This month Lyric:

• has definitely discovered she has hands and fingers - she is grabbing at everything, sometimes even grasping what she was aiming for and sucks on her right hand/fingers all the time
• has spotted her feet wiggling around and looks surprised every time
• went from LOVING being swaddled at 10 weeks to HATING it one day later - and to think, I was worried she'd have to be swaddled up until her toddler years
• still hates tummy time with a fiery passion
• now has a consistent bedtime every night at 6:30 pm and rises for the day at 6:00 or 7:00 am
• wakes up once a night to eat after about an 8 to 11 hour-long stretch of sleep
• currently weighs 10 pounds, 12 ounces and fits into almost all of her 3 month clothes
• had her first visit to the Harley Davidson Santa & Mrs. Claus!

Happy three-month birthday my little munchkin!  I can't believe I have such a beautiful blue-eyed daughter.  :)

20-Minute Workout That Will Kick Your Butt

Just a quick post today - I have an 11-week old little girl who has her first cold.  :(  Runny nose, cough, sneezing and a watery eye.  Poor thing.

I don't do workout posts on here very often.  Ok I never do workout posts on here.  But I did this one as part of the Home Workout Challenge and it kicked my butt.

I loved it.

See, I'm one of those weird people who secretly like being sore after a good sweat session.  That's usually how I judge the quality of a workout.  If I'm not sore, I didn't push myself hard enough.


This workout is 20 minutes long, requires no equipment (you don't even need shoes!) and the cool part about it is that you can do it again and again to improve your "score".  All you need is a clock with a second hand or a stopwatch (I use the one on my iPhone).


First - warm up your muscles.  I don't care what you do, just get your body moving a bit.  Jumping jacks, butt-kicks, shadow boxing, etc.


Then start your timer and begin.

3 rounds (rest 1 minute between the rounds):

• 1 min static squat
• 1 min squats
• 1 min plank
• 1 min sit-ups
• 1 min arm rotations
• 1 min push-ups

Go to a squat position and hold it for one minute, then do as many normal squats as you can in one minute. After that, go to a plank position and hold it for one minute, then do normal sit-ups for one minute. Finally, stretch your arms straight and rotate them in small circles for one minute, then do as many push-ups as you can for one minute. Rest one minute and start the second round. The total number of rounds is three. Your score is the number of squats + sit-ups + push-ups.

 My score - 200

This workout is killer.  My arms and shoulders are so sore today!  I'm definitely saving this one for future use.  Please let me know if you give it a try!

**Edited to add - Arm Rotations: Stand with your arms straight out on either side of you, parallel with the floor. Then rotate them at the same time in small circles (about 6 inches) forward for 30 seconds, then backward for 30 seconds.  You should feel the burn in your upper back and in your shoulders.

My Favorite Snack

Now that it's officially winter here in Colorado, I'm pretty sad that many of my beloved fruits aren't in season anymore.  But as much as I miss strawberries, watermelon and peaches (oh how I miss peaches...) there is one fruit that I am so happy to see again - pomegranates!

Although they are a pain in the you-know-what to open up and separate, they are SO WORTH IT.  Crunchy, juicy and tart - mmmm, I love a good pomegranate aril.  My favorite way to eat them is so simple. A giant scoop of plain Greek yogurt, a spoonful of peanut butter and a handful of arils.

 I have had 5 bowls just like this one over the past 3 days.

Lyric doesn't like the cold weather either.

Good thing I have a nice, warm fleece coat to bundle her up in when we leave the house. Because it's going to be a while until she gets to try her first pomegranate.

 

Friday Facts

• During naptime, do not, I repeat, DO NOT pick up and try to play with your baby if she wakes up crying.  This means she is NOT DONE NAPPING.  And will now be impossible to put back to sleep.

• The Home Workout Challenge is still going well.  The workouts are short and easy to accomplish during naptime or after Lyric goes to bed.  The Paleo diet plan however.....um, yeah.  Not a fan.

• Giving up caffeine and chocolate in the same week does not bode well for me.  Though I am happy to say that I haven't had any sweets or dessert since Thanksgiving (!), the break from caffeine is more for Lyric - she sleeps better when I avoid it.

• Brussels sprouts used to be one of those veggies I stayed away from.  But ever since tasting my cousin's recipe for them on turkey day, I had to try it out for myself.  Fresh (not frozen!) brussels sprouts, olive oil, fresh garlic, salt, pepper and shredded parmesan.  Quarter sprouts, drizzle with oil, sprinkle salt, pepper and garlic and roast for 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, toss and serve.

• The above plate also contains my first attempt at cooking pork cutlets. Meh.  Anyone have a recipe that doesn't result in a tough texture??  I can't seem to get it right.

• Someone has discovered that she has hands.  I'm having way too much fun with it.

• I'm slowly getting the hang of this stay-at-home-mom thing.  We have a growing routine and an almost set bedtime (7pm). We also go out on certain days of the week to run errands and go to a motherhood group and a breastfeeding group.  The biggest hurdle?  Winging it.  I need a schedule.  Lyric needs a schedule.  I do certain things on certain days (laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, etc.).  It's going well - some days it's an attempt at organized chaos but it's a slow process.

• I miss chocolate. And coffee...