Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Red Tricycle & Me

Check out a photog write up on me at red-tricycle

If you're a Seattle parent, this site is the uber-duberist for all things hip in the breeding world.

Sunday, May 27, 2007

Weighting

So, there's this rumor going around in the breeding world that nursing your young will make the pounds miraculously drop. Sure, this works in the first few weeks and month post delivery but after that, they fail to tell you that women who were thin prior to conceiving are more likely to hold onto 5, 10, even 20 lbs of baby weight. Exhibit one: Me.

I gained 50-55 lbs with Xander. Mind you he was a hefty fellow, weighing in at 9lbs 3 ounces, but I had... well... let's call is xtra, with a lowercase x.

Many many pounds departed, 35 to be exact, by the time Mr. X was 2 months.

The remainder, well, they've refused to leave.

When I say refuse, I mean it.

Case in point: I've paid for 5 weeks of not so great tasting diet food. Stuck to it for 2 weeks (okay, I cheated a wee wee bit..... occasionally (substituting 3 fruits for an evening glass of wine). What do I have? A new scale, to prove the first one wrong, which it turns out was not lying or faulty. After days and days of no more than 1500 calories, my jeans are the same and well, it's just... uhm... kind of depressing.

This is the point in the story where I Google like mad to prove that there's some reason beyond me to blame.

After numerous oracle searches .... Enter: post-partum weight loss... no weight loss breast feeding... weaning and pregnancy weight loss... I've come to learn that my body is likely revolting and storing stores for the drought or more appropriately, the famine.

I'm probably divulging too much, not only boring but too personal, stuff for the internet but this is a public service announcement: 1. don't believe the hype about nursing weight loss 2. if you were thin before hand and haven't lost a portion of the flub, it will/might/should/god please! fall off when you wean the lad or lass, or, at least that's my excuse.

Meanwhile, a giant box of uneaten, not so edible, diet food is waiting for the day the boy is weaned. Or, that's at least what I'd like to think.

The Walking Boy & Belly Dancing Man



Yesterday was Alex's 33rd birthday.
I smile because, well... it's his day & it's pretty cool when someone you adore has a day.
In addition:
1. Xander walked, unassisted.
2. I had visions of my husband belly dancing in Marrakesh, which you can see came true.



Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Separation Anxiety

Yesterday, I came to realize the power and safety of 'Mother'.

There was a spot in the day care at The Scary Gym so we went for it. Ms. Doubtfire was sick this week so this was my one chance for alone time. Turns out it wasn't meant to be. See, there's this thing we're experiencing called 'separation anxiety'.

After 40 minutes of catching up on my Hollywood smut mags while attempting to sweat, I saw the daycare lady coming my way. If I was a filmmaker and this was my movie, everything would decelerate as a low and slow "NOOOOOOO" bellowed out of me.

Turns out the boy was having an extended meltdown--he'd been at it since I left.

Daycare lady's words "He won't calm down--you need to come now".

This is the part where I started to realize how being a mother is instinctual and hijacks you on all levels when something isn't right. I wanted push day care lady out of my way in true Momma Bear fashion and run to my boy but managed to maintain my cool with a friendly conversation about the weather.

I got to my guy with out hurting anyone in my path and found him indeed out of sorts. He had been crying so long that he had that gaspy hiccup shudder thing going on, which continued for another hour.

Later on, while reading about separation anxiety, my heart hurt, not just for my boy who was so worried I wasn't coming back, but also for all the little people in this world who don't have somebody. I kept imagining all the kids who don't ever experience separation anxiety or who have a never ending version because they don't have a sense of safety with a parent or caregiver.

Remodeling Shopping List

2 toilets
1 shower faucet
1 kitchen sink
1 kitchen sink faucet
kitchen cabinets and knobs
9 lighting fixtures
1 window

Shopping of this sort... not fun.

Thursday, May 03, 2007

The Photos from Last Week's Shoot

Two of the photos from the family I photographed last week for Soulumination are up on there site. Check um out here www.soulumination.org/blog.html