This little piggy...

Roscoe had an official weigh-in today: 17lbs. 11oz.

Our "little" guy gained almost 4 pounds since his last appointment on December 9th, and now he rocks the 20th percentile! He's still in the 3rd percentile for height so he technically qualifies for overweight. No worries though, the Pediatrician believes Roscoe will slim down again once he starts to move (i.e., crawl), and as long as we continue to let him be the boss of how much food he eats.

Operation "solids & sleep" has paid off in more than one way, and the doctor even used the coveted term thriving to describe Roscoe's current state. The affirmation that all is going well in the world of Roscoe pretty much made my day.

On an unhappier note Roscoe received five shots, two of which were the second doses of H1N1 and Influenza. Roscoe seemed to recover more quickly from the shock of this round of vaccines. Aided by a quickie nursing session he was smiling and laughing within a few minutes.

Unfortunately, the appointment and wait time took almost three hours so Andy and I didn't have time afterward to treat ourselves to gelato like we had hoped to. Instead, Andy went back to work and Roscoe and I made our way home for a nap.

Here's a photo from earlier today:

Cool Guy

Quote of the Day

A fellow McFatty Monday'er inspired me today with this quote:

"We have time for whatever we choose to do, so let's own our choices!"

McFatty Monday Week I: B+

Like a typical data junky, I'm curious about last weeks' numbers but I've decided to forgo the customary weekly weigh-in to focus instead on measuring progress in four-week intervals.

As much energy as the effort to revive this postpartum bod will require, and because I am acutely aware of the emotional investment wrapped up in The Weigh-In, the currency of physical change will be more meaningful to me than tracking the inevitable weekly weight fluctuations.

I decided to follow Weight Watchers Online (no time for in-person meetings!) and I use the daily plan manager to keep track of my points each day--one computer or another is always within arm's reach, so it's the most convenient way to do it. Each day I'm allowed 26 points, with an additional 35 points each week to "spend" however I like. And like someone unaccustomed to restraint, I started off the week by consuming all 35 of my extra points, plus some, which left me playing catch up for the rest of the week. I had to roll into the deficit all the activity points I earned as well, and I ended the week in the red, negative 7.5 points.

As an emotional eater, food has never ever been just about sustenance. As an inherently emotional first-time parent (not to mention sleep deprived!), I've found it even more challenging to regard food as purely nutritional. In order to stay awake and alert day after day following nights of unrest, food also serves as a welcome break from the monotony of the task at hand, or a pick-me-up to thwart the afternoon lull.

It's been a long time since I've restricted my caloric intake--15 months, actually. And as I often am, I have been surprised this go 'round with the modest amount of food required to achieve fullness and satisfaction. Choices people. It comes down to choices.

It also feels good to reconnect with a healthier approach to eating. Delayed gratification has its rewards, and finding balance between abstinence and free-for-all is something to strive for. Blame my personality type, but I do love to plan my meals in advance, track diligently, measure portion sizes, and tally my points.

As expected, I knocked out early in the week my three boxing classes and weight lifting sessions. Orchestrating a way to feed Roscoe during my workouts has been my greatest obstacle to adopting a more structured gym routine. After months of inferior pumping, then agony over my failure, and finally a few recent desperate attempts to find an alternate solution, I finally accepted my fate and hooked myself back up to that pump...lo and behold, milk! In the end, Roscoe slept through my absences never once needing to be fed. Ironic, but encouraging for the future.

Week 1 of McFatty Monday was a success, and knowing that our cyber support group exists to hold me accountable really made the difference this week. It can be overwhelming to attend to the big picture of lifestyle change and all the steps required to reach our long-term goals. So let's recommit to ourselves and to each other week by week, even day by day if needed, because persistence wins this game.

This week's score: B+

Cardio: A

Strength Training: A-

Weight Watchers: B-

If you get a chance, check out the Queen of McFatty Monday over at the Heir to Blair.

Fluffy bottoms

My mom sewed a new pair of pants for Roscoe! So warm and cozy, they are made from scraps leftover from his baby quilt.

Powder blue chenille exterior, flannel monkey interior and a cuff to allow for growth. They are perfect for the winter. Would a pair of pants sewn by Grandma, just for you, be complete without a personalized tag? I don't think so!

This photo shows 1) Roscoe modeling his new fluffy pants, 2) the three pounds he's gained in the past 4 weeks:

Grow Baby, Grow!

Singing a Happy Tune

Tuesday through Friday I was a single Momma while Andy was a hard working Poppa on business in Maryland.

I reconfigured my work week to include Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday so that I could rely on Nanny M for some extra hands during the day. Wednesday and Thursday were seamless besides Roscoe's recent tendency to wake for the day at 4 am. Thursday night we were hit with yet another snowstorm, so when Nanny M phoned Friday morning from the bank of snow in which she was stranded, I decided to cut my losses and embrace the snow day. I still managed to log a full days work during Roscoe's naps and after he went to sleep for the night (at 2:30 pm!--I'll save this unfortunate part of his sleep routine for another post).

Being The Momma while Andy was away was pretty relaxing for the most part. Roscoe slept well--impressing me with consistent sleep intervals of 4-6 hours, so I enjoyed the luxury of having big chunks of time on which very few demands were placed. The evenings were mine! I worked out in the garage, got hooked on trashy MTV's Real World DC, finished reading one of several books that I've been chronically "in the middle of", baked some of my favorite chocolate cookies, and overall found great satisfaction in holding down the fort in Andy's absence. I even did some cleaning, which is pretty much unheard of these days. Or ever, if you know me in real life.

In other Roscoe news, two white-caps were brought to my attention 4 days ago during a nursing session--sure enough bottom teeth 1 and 2 are working their way out. He has also transitioned from the Bumbo to his highchair, drinks on his own from his sippy cup, and uses his hands to pick up food and feed himself. See what you miss in just a few days?

Andy returned home last night and we're all looking forward to a weekend together.

Found!

I finally found a great way to transport Roscoe's homemade baby food to and fro. I first discovered Innobaby's Packin' Smart dispensers years ago in one of my favorite Richmond maternity stores. At the time I thought the concept was a cool one and noted the brand for future use. The Innobaby line has since expanded to include a product called Packin' Smart Stack-N-Seal, which is designed to store items both dry and wet. They come in stacks of two or four and have the capacity to hold a volume of a half cup in each container--perfect portions for Roscoe's banana and mango fruit puree, cheerios, or even water.

I love their versatility. Each container can be used individually, or when more storage is needed, the containers interlock and stack into a neat tier. The lid on each container creates a natural dispenser great for sprinkling dry snacks out onto a surface, or pouring into another dish. Each lid can also be twisted off entirely and then you have a nice open-mouthed container from which to spoon out the contents. Oh! And they're dishwasher, microwave, and freezer safe, as well as BPA, and Phthalate free.

I just fill 'em up and toss them into the diaper bag, and we're all set. No leaks so far, and they make for convenient portability of healthy food when we're out and about.

Keep'n Fresh Baby Storage is also made by Innobaby. The glass containers hold a half cup serving. These too are microwave, oven, and freezer safe. They are adorable in person--way cuter than I ever thought baby food storage could be--and they have lids that snap on to create an airtight seal to keep food protected. Leftover bananas, avocados, and apples always turn brown if I just cover them with saran wrap and store in the fridge. Not the case with these! Additional sizes offer smaller portion sizes for babies new to the foodie world, though they are not available in glass.

Both products have a long list of nice features. But what I love best is that they are functional, and make it simple and easy for me to feed Roscoe the way that I want to, even when we're not at home.

McFatty Monday

Sometimes, I think it's fair to say that my body image is that of my former self in 4th grade. As a kid I was a happy little chubster, unbeknownst to me until a friend's dad pointed it out. I did grow out of it I suppose, as I grew taller, but I've always struggled with my weight. No matter how much I actually weighed. Whether at 119 (Sophomore year of college) or 184 (right before Roscoe was born). The bottom line is that I am not one of those girls that can eat whatever, and do pilates to stay in shape. And I'm no novice when it comes to weight loss.

I've always been athletic--hungry for competition and built for physical endurance. I've rowed varsity crew, run marathons, played defense on the soccer field, stole bases in the ballpark, and refined my roundhouse with cardio kickboxing. I've trained with personal trainers many times over the years, for big events like my wedding, to rehab after Grave's Disease took its toll, and just for the fun of it. Physical fitness has over the years become much more than a hobby. It is a passion that in part defines who I am. So it is an understatement to say that I feel as if part of me has been missing since Roscoe was born. Despite what the scale says.

This is one of the larger reasons why life-after-baby has been such a challenge for me. My body is not what it used to be, both in function and form. My time is no longer mine--oh how I miss the days when the only thing standing between me and my workout was motivation. I miss logging hours at the gym. and I miss the satisfaction that comes from challenging my body to create visible change.

Results. That's what I strive for. I like to feel strong. I like to show off at the gym. I love to sweat, I love the burn, and....oh yeah, I REALLY love to eat. Generally speaking my downfall has been the way in which I consume calories in all their glorious forms. I could workout for hours and then compensate with the Crouching Tiger Roll at Sumo San or a sundae at Bev's. But that's where Weight Watchers has always saved the day. If ever I want to lose weight, I choose WW. It's easy, it's versatile, and it works.

With a new baby, meal planning and eating anything that is not made of convenience has hit a new low. And negotiating ways to feed Roscoe while away (i.e., paying the [breast]pump) has proven to be quite the challenge. However, now that we're getting a better handle on his night wakes I have been able to successfully pump each night--2-3 ounces total, but hey, it's a meal. And as I've already blogged, last month I signed up for a membership at LA boxing, so my goal is to attend three classes a week, and work in three sessions of weight training (in the garage).

So the one other thing that happened on New Year's Eve that I didn't mention in my previous post, occurred between eating dinner and falling asleep. As a first step toward reclaiming our before baby bodies, Andy and I bounded upstairs for a Get'n in Shape "before" photo shoot. Clothed and Unclothed. So we could be real about where we are. If I'm ever feeling brave I might post the clothed photos sometime, but only if I can follow them with after-shots to blow your socks off. We shall see! And we measured the circumference of every trouble spot we could find.

Then we worked out in the garage for some baseline performance measurements that were truly pathetic. Truly.

In preparation for this whole January 1 Resolution stuff, I made sure to eat my weight in cookies, chocolate, and eggnog over the holiday, and I do believe that I succeeded in fattening myself up by a few pounds. So my starting weight is 153.5. 11 pounds from my pre-baby weight, and 18.5 pounds from my goal weight. Why I always pick 135 as my goal weight, I don't know. Remember how I said I was a chunk as a kid? Well, that's what I weighed in 6th grade, 7th, 8th, and 9th grade. Anyway, it seems to be the weight that I naturally gravitate toward, and I found through experience that anything less is far too much work to maintain.

So, It's time to get serious and with the launch of McFatty Monday's hosted by Blair, I have the perfect venue to share with you yet another episode of my adventures in weight loss.

I'M GAME. Want to join us?

See you next week!

2009: The Year of the Buddy System

We rang in the New Year in true new-parent style with microwaved take-and-bake dinners enjoyed by candlelight followed by falling asleep well before the ball began to drop in Time's Square. I think we whispered Happy New Year to each other at some point in the night as I crawled back under the covers after diapering and nursing Roscoe back to sleep. But that is how it goes these days.

As so many people told us it would, becoming a parent changes everything. For better and for worse. 2009 was indeed life changing, and one of the very best years that we've had so far. Obvious highlights include my pregnancy and Roscoe's birth. Even the aftermath is worthy.

The way in which the past 7 months have whizzed by is both alarming and a relief. It's scary to think of the pace at which the clock will turn from here on out. Before we know it we'll have lots of little Roscoes underfoot and this very special time will feel like forever ago. Coincidentally, as Tina Fey so appropriately expressed, "It is the year after the baby comes that is like someone hitting you every day in the face with a hammer." As a consequence of this truth, I'm relieved we are well past the halfway mark!

In the end, I proclaim 2009 the year of the Buddy System*. There have been countless days at the end of which the only thing keeping me sane and showered was Andy. Andy's pep talks have become world famous--at least in my world. In addition to all the baby related stuff of 2009, a meaningful highlight to note was the almost daily confirmation that I picked the right man for me, and the right dad for my kid.

It's not every day that you fall in love with your future baby daddy as young as I did, but I'm proud that I had good sense, even then, to pick a guy like Andy to hang out with. And now that we're here I can't imagine what the experience of raising kids might be like without someone like him at my side. So for all the little sisters out there: take care to marry a man who will partner with you to raise your babes, and who will love them with as much dedication and heart as he loves you. Believe me. You will need it, and it will mean everything.

Cheers to another crazy year ahead in 2010!

*According to Wikipedia: The buddy system is a procedure in which two people, the buddies, operate together as a single unit so that they are able to monitor and help each other. In adventurous or dangerous activities, where the buddies are often equals, the main benefit of the system is improved safety: each may be able to prevent the other from becoming a casualty or rescue the other in a crisis.