Last time I posted I was going to achieve all these goals, and as we all knew...I would ultimately fail. If I remember right I did well for a while so I'll pat myself on the back for that.
My good friend, in the midst of my whining, suggested Weight Watchers to me. I thought that I would never come to need that service, but the reality is I'm getting older and I've had 2 babies. It's time to get real...this body is not as resilient as I used to be. I'm proud to say that since joining I have lost 13 pounds and I have 14 more to go to reach my goal weight. I'm thinking the goal may not be realistic anymore though so I might bump it up 5 pounds...so 9 more to go!
Also David and I have really been doing well with housekeeping the last 2 weeks. We have found "The Time Warp Wife". Her blog has a very easy to follow housekeeping schedule and between the two of us we've managed to make our house a lot more clean and sane!!!
This last weekend was Mark's 3rd Easter and Molly's 1st! We are so blessed to have such an amazing, healthy family! Those little munchkins brighten up our lives as well as our families lives. They are truly God's little miracles!!! Molly of course didn't hunt for eggs, in fact she hated the mere feel of grass. She did however look precious in her little smocked bishop dress! Mark had 4 Easter egg hunts in the span of 3 days and so by the end of it all he was disenchanted with the thrill of the hunt. By the second to last hunt he had caught on that Mommy wouldn't let him eat very much more candy so instead of collecting a lot of eggs to open at the end so Mommy could steal the candy...he would open the egg as soon as he found it and eat the candy before I could do anything about it. I'm not sure whether to be impressed or scared!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
New Year....New You...New Body please!!!
I never set New Years' resolutions but I decided that I would this year. This year marks the year that my family is complete...meaning I'm pretty sure I'm not having another baby unless the Lord just says I must. So I got to thinkin'...I've been pregnant during the LAST THREE YEARS!!! So no wonder I don't look anything like I used to. I'm hoping it's the crazy stretching of my body and not just my new found sweet tooth...hehe!
Here are my resolutions to date:
1. I will exercise at least 3 days a week
2. I will cook dinner at home at least 4 days a week
3. I will not have dessert more than 2 times a week (this is proving to be the hardest to keep)
4. I will not talk ugly about my body in front of my kids
5. PRAY more often
6. Fold and put away laundry as soon as it comes out of the dryer (I change my mind..this is the hardest one to keep)
7. Take a family vacation this year
Today is January 3, 2011 and I have exercised 2 times since 1/1/11 and cooked at home once this week, the week starting today as I count it so I think I'm doing pretty great! I'm excited about this year. We're complete and we just get to watch each other grow, physically (hopefully just for the kids), intellectually and spiritually. I hope you guys have a Happy New Year!!!
Here are my resolutions to date:
1. I will exercise at least 3 days a week
2. I will cook dinner at home at least 4 days a week
3. I will not have dessert more than 2 times a week (this is proving to be the hardest to keep)
4. I will not talk ugly about my body in front of my kids
5. PRAY more often
6. Fold and put away laundry as soon as it comes out of the dryer (I change my mind..this is the hardest one to keep)
7. Take a family vacation this year
Today is January 3, 2011 and I have exercised 2 times since 1/1/11 and cooked at home once this week, the week starting today as I count it so I think I'm doing pretty great! I'm excited about this year. We're complete and we just get to watch each other grow, physically (hopefully just for the kids), intellectually and spiritually. I hope you guys have a Happy New Year!!!
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
I'm officially nuts
Monday night, the night of probably the craziest idea I've ever had...My dad has a really nice electric Lionel "Choo Choo" around the base of my parents tree that Mark LOVES!!! Everyday Mark requests to "play choo choos with Gaga" or "play with Nana" or "see Nana's Christmas". So I decided to make his dreams come true. We planned on going over to their house that night so Mark could play with the train. I decided to take both kiddos myself so that David could have time to study for his banking finals and to finish hooking up our outside Christmas lights. I learned my lesson from the previous choo choo session where Mark refused to eat dinner, so I decided to grab us something to eat before we went over to my parents house...
Here's where I must have lost my mind. I decided to take them into McAlister's to sit down at a table by ourselves to enjoy a slightly healthy meal. I am over us eating french fries or convenience food at drive-thru restaurants, but maybe I should have made this decision when I was going to have some help. Ok so I pick up Mark from school. Everything's going great. He's having a great time with his teacher. Molly has a full belly and is content in her car seat...this is going to work! Well...Mark starts requesting a candy cane, a candy cane that I do not have. He proceeds to request said candy cane and whatever piece of candy pops in his head the entire way to McAlister's. When he realizes that he's not getting candy then his carseat hurts and guess what will cure the pain?!! "Candy cane, Mama" (in sad pathetic whine). We drive up to McAlister's, he's screaming and tears are rolling. Molly's still pleasant...actually asleep at this point and I'm thinking to myself, "Stephanie, you're nuts!!!" I'm still gutsy at this point. I get her out of the car and come around to get him. He's still crying, but as soon as the crisp air hits his face he's distracted. So now I'm thinking we're going to be fine. I pick up the car seat while still carrying him (approximately 60 pounds I'm carrying now) and enter the restaurant. Not 3 feet into the door I put him down for him to walk and he throws himself on the ground and starts crying AGAIN. I pick him back up and proceed to walk to the order line. He gets himself together and asks to walk. Ok...he's checking out the Christmas decor, everything's dandy. I order, he's still great. I hand him his milk, grab my tea and Molly and he throws himself down again. Apparently he wants a giant jug of tea that they were advertising. Oh man!!! I pick him up, try to calm him down. At this point a customer comes to me, looks at me like I'm helpless or something and offers her help. I'm thankful, ask her to grab me a cup to share my tea with him and we move on to sit down. He's calm now we're having a great time, Molly's still asleep, he's eating his food, we're talking about his day. I'm thinking ok this is great!!! He spills his milk, now my bottom is wet and cold, but it's ok he's still in a great mood and I'm feeling very capable. Next...Molly's eyes pop open. Oh no, she's either going to play it cool or start screaming. Then her face turns blood red and the grunting begins! You've got to be kidding me!!! There's no way I can make it back out to the car to grab the diaper bag, take them both in the bathroom, change her diaper and not lose my mind at the same time!!! She finished her business and sat in it happily for a few more minutes at McAlister's and the whole ride to my parents. Thanks, Molly, now that ends the story on her. Ok back to Mark...he's finished his meal, he's still happy and now he requests a cookie. Apparently the Teddy Grahams will not do. So I get him all excited to leave the restaurant, without a cookie, with promises to go see Nana and Gaga to play choo choos and eat cookies. (Sigh) We get almost out the door without a hitch...I'm thinking I've held the door long enough for all three of us to get out the door, but I hadn't and the heavy door to the restaurant came back and smacked Mark in the head. It was soooo loud and I just knew he was gonna lose it! He didn't thankfully and I kissed his head, he rubbed his head and we walked to the car. I get Mark in the car, find a piece of cookie from the day before in his seat. I hand it to him thinking this will keep him quiet on the way to their house (I know, mother of the year!!!). He's happy with my find. I walk around the car, pop Molly's carseat in the base, shut the door, come back around the car...I sit in my seat, let out a sigh of relief and then....a piece of cookie flys from Mark's hand and pelts me in the back of the head!!! Perfect ending to an interesting dinner experience!!! LOL!!! I will NEVER do that again!
Here's where I must have lost my mind. I decided to take them into McAlister's to sit down at a table by ourselves to enjoy a slightly healthy meal. I am over us eating french fries or convenience food at drive-thru restaurants, but maybe I should have made this decision when I was going to have some help. Ok so I pick up Mark from school. Everything's going great. He's having a great time with his teacher. Molly has a full belly and is content in her car seat...this is going to work! Well...Mark starts requesting a candy cane, a candy cane that I do not have. He proceeds to request said candy cane and whatever piece of candy pops in his head the entire way to McAlister's. When he realizes that he's not getting candy then his carseat hurts and guess what will cure the pain?!! "Candy cane, Mama" (in sad pathetic whine). We drive up to McAlister's, he's screaming and tears are rolling. Molly's still pleasant...actually asleep at this point and I'm thinking to myself, "Stephanie, you're nuts!!!" I'm still gutsy at this point. I get her out of the car and come around to get him. He's still crying, but as soon as the crisp air hits his face he's distracted. So now I'm thinking we're going to be fine. I pick up the car seat while still carrying him (approximately 60 pounds I'm carrying now) and enter the restaurant. Not 3 feet into the door I put him down for him to walk and he throws himself on the ground and starts crying AGAIN. I pick him back up and proceed to walk to the order line. He gets himself together and asks to walk. Ok...he's checking out the Christmas decor, everything's dandy. I order, he's still great. I hand him his milk, grab my tea and Molly and he throws himself down again. Apparently he wants a giant jug of tea that they were advertising. Oh man!!! I pick him up, try to calm him down. At this point a customer comes to me, looks at me like I'm helpless or something and offers her help. I'm thankful, ask her to grab me a cup to share my tea with him and we move on to sit down. He's calm now we're having a great time, Molly's still asleep, he's eating his food, we're talking about his day. I'm thinking ok this is great!!! He spills his milk, now my bottom is wet and cold, but it's ok he's still in a great mood and I'm feeling very capable. Next...Molly's eyes pop open. Oh no, she's either going to play it cool or start screaming. Then her face turns blood red and the grunting begins! You've got to be kidding me!!! There's no way I can make it back out to the car to grab the diaper bag, take them both in the bathroom, change her diaper and not lose my mind at the same time!!! She finished her business and sat in it happily for a few more minutes at McAlister's and the whole ride to my parents. Thanks, Molly, now that ends the story on her. Ok back to Mark...he's finished his meal, he's still happy and now he requests a cookie. Apparently the Teddy Grahams will not do. So I get him all excited to leave the restaurant, without a cookie, with promises to go see Nana and Gaga to play choo choos and eat cookies. (Sigh) We get almost out the door without a hitch...I'm thinking I've held the door long enough for all three of us to get out the door, but I hadn't and the heavy door to the restaurant came back and smacked Mark in the head. It was soooo loud and I just knew he was gonna lose it! He didn't thankfully and I kissed his head, he rubbed his head and we walked to the car. I get Mark in the car, find a piece of cookie from the day before in his seat. I hand it to him thinking this will keep him quiet on the way to their house (I know, mother of the year!!!). He's happy with my find. I walk around the car, pop Molly's carseat in the base, shut the door, come back around the car...I sit in my seat, let out a sigh of relief and then....a piece of cookie flys from Mark's hand and pelts me in the back of the head!!! Perfect ending to an interesting dinner experience!!! LOL!!! I will NEVER do that again!
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
It's been a while...
I decided to revisit our blog and noticed...oops it's been a while since I posted last. A lot has happened since August 26th. I started back to work 3 weeks ago, Molly started smiling, Mark got pink eye, Molly started school, and Molly got kicked out of school the first day because she has thrush!!! Wow it's been a whirlwind 3 weeks for me.
I started work September 20th and in the middle of the night before I came back to work, Molly gave me a huge smile! How sweet of her to give me such a precious gift right as my maternity leave came to an end. Sweet girl! Molly has been such a good baby. Everyone said we lucked out with Mark that he was such a great baby and good sleeper that there's no way our next one would be as good. Well they just don't know any better. Molly started sleeping through the night (8 hours) for us on October 3rd. It's been awesome! Sunday morning I woke up to a cry expecting to roll over and see that the clock struck 2 am, but alas it was 5 am! Hallelujah!!! After that we had a couple of hit or miss nights but we got it down and she's been sleeping well for about a week.
Here we continue chronologically in the world of the Bangs'. Two weeks ago I get a call from Mark's preschool..."Stephanie, we think little Mark has pink eye..." Dun Dun Dun! I'm freaking out thinking my kid is the contaminated one. Oh and btw they posted signs saying some nasty kid in this classroom probably infected your kid with pink eye! Yep that would be my kid. Ok they didn't really do that and NO he's not a dirty kid. I tell you what is highway robbery though is the cost of eye drops for pink eye even after insurance! I think next time unless my child is in pain I might just let it ride itself out!
Alright, next, Molly started school yesterday. I spent all Sunday night getting everything ready and was so sad but so excited for Molly to have new people loving on her. Here it comes...I'm at lunch yesterday and I get a call from the school..."Stephanie, I think Miss Molly has thrush..." ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!!! I'm the mom that has the nasty kids, they must think I don't take care of the. Ok I really don't think that they think that, but this is getting almost comical. So David goes back to school seriously like an hour after he drops her off to pick her up. Of course the pediatrician is at lunch...so what do I do? I use my doctor privileges and call her in her first medication. Don't worry people, it's for her mouth and that's kind of my expertise. Thankfully the medicine is working but Molly is having a really tough time eating so needless to say last night was kind of sleepless or more so than lately, because she doesn't eat much at a time because it's painful. My poor baby!
All in all we are doing well as a family of 4. Adjusting really well I think now. I've mastered watching both of them alone in the evening and cooking at the same time. Mark is in love with his little sister. He's very proud of his "Memaw" and loves to tickle her. It warms my heart seeing my little happy kiddos loving eachother. This is the best time of our lives thus far!
I started work September 20th and in the middle of the night before I came back to work, Molly gave me a huge smile! How sweet of her to give me such a precious gift right as my maternity leave came to an end. Sweet girl! Molly has been such a good baby. Everyone said we lucked out with Mark that he was such a great baby and good sleeper that there's no way our next one would be as good. Well they just don't know any better. Molly started sleeping through the night (8 hours) for us on October 3rd. It's been awesome! Sunday morning I woke up to a cry expecting to roll over and see that the clock struck 2 am, but alas it was 5 am! Hallelujah!!! After that we had a couple of hit or miss nights but we got it down and she's been sleeping well for about a week.
Here we continue chronologically in the world of the Bangs'. Two weeks ago I get a call from Mark's preschool..."Stephanie, we think little Mark has pink eye..." Dun Dun Dun! I'm freaking out thinking my kid is the contaminated one. Oh and btw they posted signs saying some nasty kid in this classroom probably infected your kid with pink eye! Yep that would be my kid. Ok they didn't really do that and NO he's not a dirty kid. I tell you what is highway robbery though is the cost of eye drops for pink eye even after insurance! I think next time unless my child is in pain I might just let it ride itself out!
Alright, next, Molly started school yesterday. I spent all Sunday night getting everything ready and was so sad but so excited for Molly to have new people loving on her. Here it comes...I'm at lunch yesterday and I get a call from the school..."Stephanie, I think Miss Molly has thrush..." ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!!! I'm the mom that has the nasty kids, they must think I don't take care of the. Ok I really don't think that they think that, but this is getting almost comical. So David goes back to school seriously like an hour after he drops her off to pick her up. Of course the pediatrician is at lunch...so what do I do? I use my doctor privileges and call her in her first medication. Don't worry people, it's for her mouth and that's kind of my expertise. Thankfully the medicine is working but Molly is having a really tough time eating so needless to say last night was kind of sleepless or more so than lately, because she doesn't eat much at a time because it's painful. My poor baby!
All in all we are doing well as a family of 4. Adjusting really well I think now. I've mastered watching both of them alone in the evening and cooking at the same time. Mark is in love with his little sister. He's very proud of his "Memaw" and loves to tickle her. It warms my heart seeing my little happy kiddos loving eachother. This is the best time of our lives thus far!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
We're in the groove now...
Not gonna lie these last couple of weeks have been difficult. Two kids is a lot more difficult than one, duh! The first week was great. Mark was into Molly and he was still really happy and fun, but then the second week rolled around and he realized she's not going anywhere. That's when the "Mommy complex" started. I can't pick him up for a couple more weeks because of the C-section so it's been really hard when he wants me to pick him up and console him and he doesn't understand that Mommy is recovering from major surgery.
But the last few days have been promising...Mark started preschool which, aside from morning drop offs, he's really enjoying. Molly's settling into a pretty predictable routine and for a 3 week old she's sleeping well. Going down around 10:30pm or 11pm and sleeping until 3:15am and then back up around 6:20-6:30am. Not too shabby...although I'm able to rest during the day while she's napping, having a two year old and a newborn is proving to be quite exhausting!!! Especially since our sweet little boy who USED to sleep until 9 am wakes around 7:15 am every morning ready to play :)
It's been fun though we've finally figured out when to have Mark time while Molly's asleep. While Molly's awake, Mark loves playing "where'd Molly go?" , which yes does entail a blanket over Molly's face. Don't worry we're near by :) We can tell he really is starting to love his sister. It's rewarding seeing our family grow and bond more and more everyday. Although this has been a tough few weeks, I wouldn't change anything about where we are right now.
But the last few days have been promising...Mark started preschool which, aside from morning drop offs, he's really enjoying. Molly's settling into a pretty predictable routine and for a 3 week old she's sleeping well. Going down around 10:30pm or 11pm and sleeping until 3:15am and then back up around 6:20-6:30am. Not too shabby...although I'm able to rest during the day while she's napping, having a two year old and a newborn is proving to be quite exhausting!!! Especially since our sweet little boy who USED to sleep until 9 am wakes around 7:15 am every morning ready to play :)
It's been fun though we've finally figured out when to have Mark time while Molly's asleep. While Molly's awake, Mark loves playing "where'd Molly go?" , which yes does entail a blanket over Molly's face. Don't worry we're near by :) We can tell he really is starting to love his sister. It's rewarding seeing our family grow and bond more and more everyday. Although this has been a tough few weeks, I wouldn't change anything about where we are right now.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Molly Bangs is here and now we are 4!
A week and two days ago I weighed 183 pounds and today I weigh 161. How did I lose 22 pounds in a little over a week?! I call it the "Have a Baby Diet"! 7lb 4 oz of that 22 pounds was little Miss Molly and a lot of it was a huge amount of water weight! Boy am I glad that I wasn't pregnant this last week in Texas. It was a hot one!
Molly Katherine Bangs was born to us last Friday, August 6, 2010 at 8:08am via C-section done by the fabulous Dr. Ellen Parrill at Arlington Memorial Hospital. She was, like I said, 7 lbs 4 oz. and 18 1/2 inches long. She has been a really good and easy baby thus far. She got to meet her brother last Friday afternoon after his nap and he has been smitten ever since. He calls her "Memaw" and "Mawyee". It's too cute. He always wants to hold her but then gets over it quite quickly. The best is watching his face light up when he gets to sit in the back of the car with her. He just talks and talks to her. My sweet little boy is turning out to be quite the fabulous big brother.
So we had a little nursing problem last week. And I know right now you're wondering why is she sharing this? But it's because it's funny and it involves David. Molly wasn't latching on very well and I was getting frustrated. So my husband offered to take care of her while I took a shower. When I got back to the living room, David was holding Molly and she was nursing on his shirt. He said, "hey I think this is the position she prefers". He was so proud of himself, because for those of you that know my husband well you know that he loves to figure out great strategy. Well I'm here to say he is very good at it and I credit Molly's nursing achievements to David. Thanks, David, for being the most loving and supportive husband and the best Daddy to our sweet babies.
So yes we're waking up about every 3 hours through the night now. The first few nights she gave us 4-5 hour stretches, but that was short lived. I can't complain though because she eats and then goes right back to sleep. This transition from one kid to two hasn't been as awful as I had planned. Now I will miss my husband as he goes back to work tomorrow. It has been very nice having him home for a week so we could bond with our growing family. The Lord has really blessed us with a sweet home. I love all of my fabulous roommates! Thank you all for your prayers and support. Special thanks to our Sunday School class that has been blessing us with meals for the past week and who will carry that on for us this month. That has been a huge help!
Stay tuned to the blog because there will be many more posts updating Molly's growth and I'm sure hilarious things her brother does! He has been hamming it up lately. Sweet Mark!
Monday, August 2, 2010
The end is in sight!
I went in last Friday for my weekly OB check up thinking they would tell me everything's progressing and we'll plan for a nice, simple, normal birth in the next week or so. Well I did get the news that my body is progressing, but that my little Miss Molly is breech. Breech?!! Are you serious? Not at all in my plan. Maybe that's what God is trying to teach me these days. I'm not in control. Ok, Lord, got the message loud and clear.
I did however want to know exactly when she's coming and I got my wish. Just be careful what you wish for right?! So Miss Molly will be arriving via C-section this Friday, August 6, 2010 around 7:30am provided I don't get bumped for those more emergent patients. My OB is convinced I won't make it until Friday but I kind of hope I do so that way I can pretty myself up and also finish seeing patients this week. My staff did convince me to take off Thursday though. They are probably right...I should enjoy my last day or semi freedom. There is no such thing as freedom when you already have a sweet little 2 year old. I love him!
Last night Mark pointed out his "Night Night", his bed, and then Molly's "Night Night". We're hoping that he atleast has some type of clue that things are about to be different at the house. He was so cute covering his Daddy up with all of Molly's towels that I had laid out to wash. He topped off covering Daddy with towels and giving Daddy Molly's nursing pillow with Molly's diapers on David's rear end. Don't worry I got pictures and I'll post them soon. It was too cute. He's going to be my little helper I can tell.
So I know almost exactly when our lives will be filled with more love. We're getting really excited to see what she looks like. I'm praying she'll be slightly recessive so she will look like she's my child. David prides himself in his dominance :) Stay tuned for blog posts about our new little girl!
I did however want to know exactly when she's coming and I got my wish. Just be careful what you wish for right?! So Miss Molly will be arriving via C-section this Friday, August 6, 2010 around 7:30am provided I don't get bumped for those more emergent patients. My OB is convinced I won't make it until Friday but I kind of hope I do so that way I can pretty myself up and also finish seeing patients this week. My staff did convince me to take off Thursday though. They are probably right...I should enjoy my last day or semi freedom. There is no such thing as freedom when you already have a sweet little 2 year old. I love him!
Last night Mark pointed out his "Night Night", his bed, and then Molly's "Night Night". We're hoping that he atleast has some type of clue that things are about to be different at the house. He was so cute covering his Daddy up with all of Molly's towels that I had laid out to wash. He topped off covering Daddy with towels and giving Daddy Molly's nursing pillow with Molly's diapers on David's rear end. Don't worry I got pictures and I'll post them soon. It was too cute. He's going to be my little helper I can tell.
So I know almost exactly when our lives will be filled with more love. We're getting really excited to see what she looks like. I'm praying she'll be slightly recessive so she will look like she's my child. David prides himself in his dominance :) Stay tuned for blog posts about our new little girl!
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