violet's ninth month

19lb . 12oz . 29in

wearing 9mo clothes, size 4 diapers

loves: taking selfies, eating bananas, hearing her echoing squeals at the grocery store, looking at screens (ugh)

hates: laying down (we dread diaper changes!), falling over, staying on the carpet, long drives

I sit up with ease and pull myself up to standing on everything, 

I look like a super cute vampire baby with my two new fangs up top,

 I love playing with cups, cords, and eating paper, 

I'm obsessed with pulling, eating, and petting mama's hair, 

I crawl really fast!

Y'all, this month has been too much for me. My sweet girl has lived beside me longer than she lived within me, my thyroid has been freaking out a little, we traveled 30 hours in the car for the sweetest wedding, and spent an extra week with my family due to my  Fafa's bittersweet passing, and now we are recovering from shots/blood-work (V) and a cold (me). So this post is a little late (sorry not sorry).

But we've had a great ninth month. We took V to her first baseball game and she and Bobby wore their matching hats (it's how I told him I was pregnant). We took our first swim as a family, and Violet loved playing in the giant bathtub. We watched daddy play volleyball with friends and hung out with Miss Glenda and baby Abby. My little family gave me the loveliest Mother's Day I could ever have asked for. We drove down to Gainesville for Aunt Elizabeth and Uncle Alex's beautiful wedding. And we finished out month nine by putting the "fun" in funeral as we celebrated my grandfather's life.

mother's day

We celebrated Mother's Day one week early, the same day Violet's time inside me was equal to the time we've had her in our arms. It was such a bittersweet day, full of joy but also a lot of random tears. I was gifted a morning nap while Bobby and V picked up cinnamon dusted donuts (my love language) which they brought to me in bed. We cuddled up and watched some Friends (how we spent my labor) while we sipped coffee and reminisced. Then we did our normal Saturday of grocery shopping and errands. And then I made some crowns of jasmine while baby napped. At twilight we went out into the garden and snapped these sweet pictures I will treasure all of my days. I'm so grateful to have spent my Mother's Day so intimately with our little family and to have such precious memories as these.

work in progress

A few weeks ago I joined an awesome group of gals headed by an awesome lady and old friend to work on this ole mom bod. I'd started with another group in January, but promptly lost all my milk due to a lack of preparation on my end. So I was super excited to go into this experience, and this time I had an arsenal of tips and tricks to keep my milk fat and flowing. From January to the beginning of the challenge I had eaten somewhat clean and ran a few times a week, and managed to drop a few pounds down to my pre-pregnancy weight. But weight is sooooooo just a number. I still hardly recognize this body when I look in the mirror because having a baby changes EVERYTHING. And I have a ring of stretch marks (that look remarkably like a whale tail) that visibly show where my belly stole from my booty. I had twice the boobs, half the trunk-junk, loose skin all over, and I was overall quite squishy. And for the most part I didn't even care. I made a person, and that is incredible, and that takes time to recover from. What I did mind was my abs still being separated and not functioning at all. It felt like my insides were gelatinous when I'd run because there was so little support. I did mind my weak, wide hips that would wear out and start popping after a mile. I did mind that nothing I put on my body fit right, mostly because of the saddle-bags of untoned muscle post-baby. I didn't feel strong, and I didn't feel like me.

But after 21 days of eating mostly clean and balanced (I did partake in an awesome girls night where I may have indulged a little, and I did have to sneak in some extra fat and beer when my milk supply weakened twice) and pressing play for 30 minutes of moderate exercise including cardio, weight training, pilates, or yoga each day (and sometimes I would substitute or add a run), I feel stronger, and I feel more "normal." I am still a work in progress, but I am loving this program. I love having an awesome team to turn to for advice, recipes, and a pick-me-up when I need it. And if a group like this is something you might want to be a part of, let's talk!

Scale Victories:

I've lost more than 10 lbs in five months while still breastfeeding

I weigh less than I did before pregnancy

I weigh less than I did on my wedding day

I am 5.4 lbs from my "goal weight"

Non Scale Victories:

I'm down two dress sizes

I can run 4.5 miles in less than 40 minutes

I can hold a plank for 1.75 minutes

I feel good