Two Under Two

Hi! Been a while huh? A lot has changed over here. We moved for the 500th time and had our baby girl, Willow, on July 26th.

Willow Elizabeth Gray

 

All is is well with her so far. We had a somewhat stressful end of the pregnancy because she was measuring small so they diagnosed her an IUGR baby (intrauterine growth restricted). I had an ultrasound once a week and a non-stress test (checking her heart rate) twice a week.  No actual problem was ever found so we sort of assumed she was just a small baby and guess what? She was…kind of. She was 6lb 7oz so not that small but compared to Brooke (8 pounds) she was small.

Anyway, she was and is healthy so that’s all that matters.

Sleep and Emotions

So, it’s been two and a half weeks. I’m really trying to enjoy the newborn stage this time around. Last time it was pretty tough. So far, emotionally, it’s been easier. I don’t feel quite as depressed as I did last time. I go up and down of course. Sometimes I feel completely overwhelmed by our situation but I know lack of sleep has a lot to do with it.

Willow has been an okay sleeper. She typically sleeps 2-3 hours at a time although a couple nights ago she was up about every 45 minutes-it was torture! Thank god Brooke is a great sleeper and wakes up around 8 so I don’t have to get up too early.

I think I am enjoying this stage more this time around but I admit, I’m looking forward to her getting a little older so she will sleep better. It’s such a shame these newborns have such a terrible sleep schedule. It would make a world of difference with just like, 6 straight hours of sleep!

The Birth

All I can say is, epidurals are amazing. So, because we were diagnosed with an IUGR baby, they wanted to induce me a week early. Sounds counter intuitive right? Apparently, small babies have a higher risk of mortality and morbidity the closer they are to 40 weeks or beyond. So, they induced me at 39.

Since I was induced, the day was just long and painful. They gave me pitocin to start contractions which lasted forever. When they told me I was 5cm dilated-and that’s it- I decided I wanted an epidural. Willow was sunny side up too so I was having a lot of back pain. I just decided, what’s the point? Labor is hard enough so why not make it easier on me and my body with an epidural? It’s not a dangerous option by any means so I tried it out.

After the epidural, I was basically a difffernt person. I suddenly had a rush of energy which was only because of the lack of pain. It was awesome! Not to knock natural birth, but seriously, wow. I didn’t feel a damn thing and I was thrilled.

The pushing part only took 45 minutes this time compared to the almost three hours with Brooke. It was a little weird because I never really knew when I was having a contraction so it was hard to know when to push, but it could have been worse. I could have been feeling every contraction :).

It was a very different experience but all was well in the end. Willow was healthy and so was I and that’s all that matters!

The Bod

I’m healing up pretty well (I think) and starting to get antsy about working out again. It’s still too soon, so I’ve been trying to go on walks and focus more on my diet.

I ate fairly decent during the pregnancy but am definitely a sugar addict. Ugh, damn you sugar. It’s just so good. Getting off the sugar train is going to be challenging. I’m trying to start slowly by finishing up sugar laden foods (like granola and flavored yogurt) then replacing them with healthier options. I know myself well enough to know if I cut it out cold turkey and think I’m replacing it all with veggies, that’ll last a day and the veggies will soon be in the trash.

That being said, I’ve really been enjoying salads lately, but probably because I use ranch dressing. That will be another switch: lower calorie dressing.

I gained almost 40 pounds during this pregnancy. I think I gained a little less with Brooke but I started at a lower weight this time. It’s amazing how your abs feel after birth: nonexistent (bowl full of jelly ha).

I’m planning on documenting my body after baby journey. I’m not a fan of the these post-partum pictures, but I think pictures are a good way to measure progress.

Here’s a before picture taken back in October (I was planning on trying to gain more muscle but then I got knocked up oops) compared to my two weeks post partum bod.

Ughh…awkward pictures.

Starting Weight: 105
Pregnancy weight at 39 weeks: 138
Weight two weeks post partum: 127

I was thinking I’d drop more weight than I have, but I think I’m being impatient.

So that’s my starting point! Next week, depending on how I feel, I might start doing a Jillian Michael’s 6 pack abs in 6 weeks DVD. I’m definitely not expecting 6 pack abs (although I’d be cool with that), I just want to get some strength back.

I will keep myself accountable through the blog! It’s up to you guys to make sure I don’t fall off the wagon :).

 

by the way, this post took me 3 days to finish. You’d think it would be epic but in reality life just gets in the way! I also wrote it on my Ipad so forgive any typos.