Lose That Bump - Postpartum Weight Loss (Month 1)

Earlier this year (March 17th to be more precise), I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy weighing 9lbs 2oz. While I really appreciate that almost 10lb head-start to my weight loss, I don't want it to end there. So I have started on a journey not just to lose weight but to be healthier!

So far I haven't been doing any sort of drastic dieting or exercise, just trying to eat healthier and try to get at least a small workout everyday and a good walk every other day. Besides that I am still doing my usual, cleaning the house and yardwork.

I am breastfeeding currently, which might help or hinder my weight loss. We will see I guess!

Here I am 8.5 months pregnant (March 1st)
Weight: 190 lbs

Here I am 7 days postpartum (March 24th)
Weight: 167 lbs

At this point I had already lost 23 lbs, although I can't really take credit for most of that. It helps that I had an uncomplicated vaginal delivery and was able to get right back into the swing of things immediately.

But most of the weight I lost was just from eating well, walking and trying not to spend TOO much time on the couch! (Two toddlers help with that.)

Blog at-cha later!

xoxo

- M

PS: Click here to read more about my weight loss journey!

Lose That Bump - Postpartum Weight Loss (Intro)

I can't believe it has already been 10 weeks since my darling little boy was born. It feels like just yesterday and yet at the same time it feels as though little G has always been a part of our clan.

After my last two pregnancies (A in 2011 and L in 2013), I didn't take any sort of proactive approach to my postpartum weight loss. This time things will be different. Giving birth three times in four years has really taken its toll on my body, so I have a lot of work ahead of me.

Some (raw/brutal) facts:

1. Before my first pregnancy, my weight was in the 120-125 pound range.
2. I topped out at 170lbs with little A (weight gain of approx 45lbs)

1st Pregnancy - 8 Months
(This was the only picture I could find)

3. I never dropped below 150lbs after giving birth to her.
4. I then went up to just under 180lbs when pregnant with L.

2nd Pregnancy - 8 Months

5. Got down to 155lbs in the year and 3 months between giving birth and getting pregnant with G.
6. Finally, went up to 190lbs in my pregnancy with G.

3rd Pregnancy - 8 Months

So here I go on my weight loss journey... hopefully I will have positive results to share!!!

xoxo

- M

The Adventures of Porch Kitty (Pt 3)

Yesterday, our foster mama kitty PK (Porch Kitty) decided to move her kittens under an end table in our bedroom. I understand she is trying to protect them and natural instincts and all that, but it made me really worried. They had no cover or anything to stop them from crawling away. No to mention the drawers are open underneath so could easily clip them when they get a bit bigger.

So I decided to try to find a better place for her to keep them that both she and myself are satisfied with, because clearly just a blanket lined box in my closet was not cutting it.

I was all over Google trying to find out what kind of places cats like to have their kittens. In the "wild" (I still can't picture domestic cats as ever living in the real wild) they are like most other animals mamas. They like dark, warm caves. They want protection from the elements and any predators.

Now, we don't really have "elements" or "predators" here, but we do have two other cats and two dogs (who I have been keeping away from the kittens, mostly for their own protection because PK can be really defensive). Not to mention a one- and two-year-old.

So I racked my brain for a place that was safe, dark and quiet. I thought of my craft room closet, but it is quite cold in there with no heating and being in the outer corner of the house. Maybe the hall closet? But there were a lot of shelves she could decide to put them on that would not be good if they fell from.

I finally decided on our upstairs bathroom cabinet. It has three doors, so I made a bed out of fresh blankets behind the far left door, closed it and left the far right door open, so that they were away from the open. I wrapped a blanket around the water pipes with twine, so no little kitties would get burns (not sure if the pipes can even get hot enough but I didn't want to take the chance). I put mama's litter box and food dishes close by, and closed the blinds over the window. I also made sure the heat vent was fully open. All in all, not too shabby.

Our bathroom has two doors, one to the hallway and one to our master bedroom. During the day I let her roam the house, but at night I try to keep her contained, so open the door to my bedroom but close the one to the hall. She is a huge snuggle bug, so she loves crawling into my bed in the middle of the night and meowing until I pet her.

Well, for now at least, our problem is solved. It has been almost 24 hours and still she hasn't tried to move them. Here's to hoping this lasts!

God bless.

- M

PS: Here is a picture of the three cats having a stand-off. They literally sat like this for almost two hours. The calico is Halo and the ginger is her brother Dexter. They were both too scared to move because PK kept growling at them. Eventually Dexter tried to run and PK chased him and Halo chased her. A few minutes later PK returned to my side please as punch. Silly kitty.

Disclaimer: No cats were hurt in the making of this picture.

You can read PK's story here and here.

Learning to Be a Gardener

I recently got the notion in my mind that it would be a brilliant idea to plant my own vegetable garden this year.

Did I mention I might be insane?

Two toddlers, two big dogs, three cats and eight kittens, and somehow I thought I needed more on my plate? Bring it on, life! Let's do this.

So of course I had no idea where to start. I researched the crap out of how to start a garden. I found what veggies should be planted indoors first, and started those.

They grew faster than I was prepared for. My gardens still aren't even remotely ready, and I'm running out of growing space! My hubby is going to help get my outdoor gardens ready so that they can be planted outside by the end of this week.

Anyway, first thing's first: I made a plan for my garden. Now because I am still new at this, I am trying this thing called "square foot gardening". 

Square Foot Gardens

The concept is basically this: divide garden into square feet, assign a vegetable to each square foot (you can have more than one of each vegetable), and then find out how many plants you can have in that space.

For example, you can sixteen carrot plants, nine beet plants but only one broccoli.

I drew up a diagram of each garden to plan it out. To simplify it further, I am doing a row of each vegetable. So every foot at the front of the garden is a different vegetable. Except for the back, which is dedicated to "tall" plants, so will have a trellis for my tomatoes, cucumbers, beans and peas.

I looked up which veggies grow better together, which grow in the shade vs. sun, and what "helper" plants I could use.

Helper plants

Marigolds: help tomatoes grow better

Basil: make tomatoes taste better

Nasturtiums: keep bugs away from squash and broccoli

Petunias: protect beans from beetles

Oregano: protect cucumber from beetles

Geraniums: keep bugs away from corn (specifically Japanese beetles)

Chives: make carrots grow sweeter

Now I have the whole garden figured out, I just have to wait (patiently) for my gardens to be ready so I can finish planting all my vegetables! So excited!

Do you have any gardening tips to share? Any of you first-time vegetable gardeners?

God bless,

- M.

The Adventures of Porch Kitty (Part 2)

The kittens are quickly growing and are already developing little personalities! I absolutely adore them, with their tiny meows and itty bitty faces.

So for any of you following the kittens story, here are some pictures with a little bit about each of them.

 BatKitty: This little black kitten has a white Batman symbol on its chest, thus its name. Very calm and snuggly, also one of the quietest ones.

 Princess Anna: This little grey tabby is very noisy and wiggly, which makes it hard when its siblings are trying to sleep. It is quite noisy and does not like to be held. My daughter named it after the princess from Frozen.

 Tiny Toes: This little baby is the second smallest of the litter. It is very silky and black and has the same white mark on its chest as mama PK.

 Squeak: This little fella is the noisiest one of the group. Very high pitched squeaks often bring mama kitty running. Also the noisiest eater. This is the biggest of the black kittens.

 Tank: This big boy is the biggest of the litter. The most developed and a bit of a bully, constantly pushing away the smaller siblings so it can eat, Tank is also very loud but loves snuggles. This one is my daughter's favourite.

 Olaf: Probably the most overlooked of the litter, Olaf is all black and quiet. It is not big or small, somewhere in the middle of the kittens size-wise. Very snuggly though. It likes being held close. My daughter named him after the lovable snowman from Frozen.

 Queen Elsa: This little grey tabby is quite vocal, but not as wiggly as its counterpart Princess Anna, who it is almost identical to except for some brown markings on the face. This one seems to be mama's favourite, and is the first one she feeds and picks up whenever she moves them. My daughter named this one after a Frozen character as well.

Baby: This little one is the runt of the litter. Very skinny and quiet, usually preferring to hide between mama's legs. Silk black with faint grey stripes in its fur.

You can read about the porch kitty here. The most recent update on the kittens is available here.

Have a great day,

M.

PS: These little fellas will all be looking for loving homes in about 8-10 weeks, so if you or someone you know are interested please let me know! Tank and Queen Elsa have been spoken for but the others are all available :)