March for Babies

Ack!  I'm supposed to be posting at least twice a week!  Somehow or another, 6 days have passed since my last post!  I'm not sure how the time keeps moving so quickly!

Me speaking at the March for Babies today.

Today was a very special day for my family.  We have been the ambassador family for the North Fulton Chapter of the March of Dimes.  I have had the privilege of sharing our story many times the past few months.  It has even been neater because I have been able to share our story at Northside Hospital, where the babies were born.  Today was the culmination of so many people's hard work.  Today was the March for Babies.  We walked nearly five miles, while pushing the triple jog stroller, honoring all of the families and babies who have fought the battle of prematurity and birth defects.  Not all of these babies survived, but we are hoping with research, one day every baby will survive and thrive the way mine have!

Wow!  I'm truly the most blessed Mom in the world.  Here is a quick synopsis of my kiddos' story below the pictures.  If you want to read more about it, here are the links to the blog I posted in for years documenting our story.

http://www.rajandginny.com/blog/?p=317

http://www.rajandginny.com/blog/?m=200805&paged=2

Evie being held for the first time.

Evie today!

Maggie at one day old had not even been able to be held yet.

Maggie today!

Josh being held for the first time within 36 hours of birth.

Josh today!

Our first family photo!

Our family today!

My triplets were born too early at 31 weeks 6 days.  This was after nearly fifteen weeks of bedrest and included a 33 day hospital stay for me.  They really wanted to come at 27 weeks, but we were determined NOT to let that happen.  In fact, 4 years ago at this very moment, I was in the hospital praying for every day I could get to keep them "cooking" inside me.  Oh it was hard.  In fact, hard doesn't really even describe it.  I wanted them to be big and healthy.  If the doctors would have told me to hang by my toes, I would have done it.  The fear and stress during that time was more than I can ever explain.


We were so blessed at how well the babies did in the NICU.  They weighed 3# 14oz, 3# 8.5oz, and 3# 13 oz at birth.  They ended up spending 27 days in the NICU and all coming home together!  Oh what an amazing day that was for me and Raj!  Our lives were forever changed by all we went through and all we've been through over the past four years.Now, I hope to encourage other families enduring many of the same hardships we endured.  

Today, my kids told me they wanted to win the race and get metals.  I told them they were already winners.  They had fought and beat odds other children can't beat.  They are already winners to me.

May I Sing Like Dora For A Moment?

I did it!  I did it!  I did it!  Hooray!

There!  I feel better now!

I had seriously contemplated not running the Zooma Women's Half Marathon at Lake Lanier this weekend, but I did it!  I have to say I feel so proud of myself.  I'm super duper sore, but that's okay!

I met some neat people at the race.  I met two women who work for Big Peach Running Company in Kennesaw and Atlanta.  They both are friends with the manager at our Big Peach!  That was cool.  Then, I met a set of identical twins who were running the race.  It was neat to talk with them about being a multiple and get some much needed advice.

The other lady I met really challenged me.  I finally have something on my bucket list.  I want to run a half marathon in every state before I die.  Doesn't that sound cool?  She was here from Austin, Texas to mark Georgia off her list.  Isn't that so neat?  I'm certain it will take me decades to do it, but I look forward to the challenge.  I wish I remembered her name......  She truly made a mark on me.

The race was so hard, and not just because I'm out of shape.  We ran the same 6.5 miles twice, and the hills were everywhere.  Holy smokes it was hard.  I loved how they said the race course had "rolling hills";  Um, no.  Not at all.  It was either up or down. and the ups were longer than the downs.  That's neither here nor there at this point.  It was a very mellow race which allowed me to finish without feeling like I was going to be picked up by the "too late to finish" bus.  The views of the lake and the breeze made for a wonderful time to be outside succeeding.

I have to remind myself that things I want to happen may not come easy, but with perseverance, I will succeed!

Tortoise and the Hare

Guess which one I am?!??!?!?!

I'm giving everyone reading this credit for knowing I'm the tortoise.  I know you are all that smart!

I stepped in the scale at the gym yesterday and weighed 209.  Here's hoping that's what the scale says when I weigh in next week!  Slowly but surely my weight is going down.  I just can't quit.  It's okay to be slow as long as your never stop.  That's what I keep telling myself!

I'm loving being a member of the gym I joined, and the kids are too!  My new dilemma is how to handle training with Steve.  I'll be honest, I only went once this week.  I've been to the gym five days though.  I have to figure out how to make it all work for me. That's what I'm learning through this experience.  If I can't make it work for me, I'm not going to succeed.  I'm going to start taking some classes at the gym and continue trying to work with Steve.  I don't want to be going to different places any more than necessary.  If you don't have kids, you will never know how much they change the equation.  I can't go and do the way I did before kids.  Where ever I go, all of them go with me.  They are such troopers!  Needless to say, they are really playing a major factor in this challenge....and they don't even know it!

I'm so lucky to have everyone at the Suwanee Magazine cheering me one!  They are such awesome advocates and supporters of my journey.  I know I haven't made it easy for them with all my changes lately, but they just keep supporting me.  I'm still shocked I'm getting to be a part of this challenge.  I want to do my best to make everyone proud and challenged to get fit.  It's not easy, but it sure is worth it.

No Excuses, Just Me

It's hard to explain my life to people who don't know me.  I'm a wife.  I'm a mom to triplets who will be four in less than a month.  I'm am certified nurse midwife.  I'm a person who enjoys going non stop most of the time.  Losing weight and dieting is hard for me to do with my crazy life.

Today, I was trying to explain to Steve why all protein and no carbs doesn't work for me.  However, I hate excuses, so I choose to freely say I choose not to do it right now.  I'm on the go almost all of the time.  I take my kids to the zoo, the aquarium, the park, the pool or anywhere else we can find to go; daily.  Yes, I said daily.  I've learned the kids behave so much better when we are out, and we have a blast!  However, that means I either buy us lunch out or I pack a lunch.  I try pretty hard to pack lunches since it's cheaper and healthier, but I don't always take the time to make them.

For my lunches, I either have a protein bar or some string cheese yogurt and fruit.  Honestly, that's just the leftovers from what I pack for the kids to eat.  As long as I'm honest about my BLT's (bites, licks and tastes), I am fine.  It's just when I choose to ignore the twenty pieces of candy I ate that I get into trouble.  I don't care how fast the weight comes off.  That is not the major goal to me.  I just want the weight to come off as I relearn correct eating.  So, that's food with the kids.

Then, there's work.  One interesting thing about babies is they often come in the middle of the night and on weekends.  Shocker, right?!?!  Because my first priority is to my family, I work almost all nights and weekends.  What this amounts to is working all day at home taking care of the kids, then working all night at the hospital.  Last time I checked, there are no Smoothie Kings or Chick-fil-a's open in the middle of the night.  However, McDonald's is open 24 hours at the hospital, and I do love a good cheeseburger.  Also, there are always Krispy Kreme donuts in the doctor's lounge for us to eat.  I swear they call me name each time I walk past them.  When I'm exhausted at 0330 after catching two babies and assisting on a c-section, that food looks really good.  I try to make myself have a protein bar or some pretzels.  In fact, I've been pretty successful if we are just talking about calories.  Protein as a "grab and go snack" makes my stomach churn at odd hours of the night.  I feel so proud of myself every time I leave the hospital not having eaten a donut.  For me, that is true success!

Okay, I've rambled enough for tonight.  I do have to explain my husband's amazing cooking in another post.  It deserves a lot of attention!

I guess all I have written tonight is to say losing weight and being healthy has to fit my life.  I'm working at figuring out what to do and what not to do to reach my goals.  Losing weight is definitely not a one size fits all journey.  I just want to find my size.  Good night.

Gym Joined!

I joined the gym.  In my opinion, a gym is a gym is a gym.  However, I really like the pools this gym offers, and I love the hours!  The kids seem to really like the child care area too.  Honestly, I really joined to take the kids swimming this summer and not be their exclusive entertainment while there!  We have friends at this gym, so the kids and I will have people to visit with all summer long.

I have worked out five days this week now!  Go me!  Today, I took the kids for a 3.5 mile run.  It was much slower than I expected because I used a different stroller than normal.  This one was awful.  I will ONLY be using this one at the zoo or Disney World.  It folds up, and my other doesn't.  Gotta love the life of triplet jog strollers :).

I'm also recovering from this insane week I had.  After Josh's surgery, I slept for 17 hours straight.  Can we say exhaustion?  I delivered 2 babies between 0100 and 0500 the day of surgery.  I never got an ounce of rest that entire night.  Oh well.  I survived.  Josh did great through surgery.  In fact, he acts virtually fine today.    Raj has been super dad and husband!  I am so blessed!

Plans

I have decided to rejoin a gym.  I have an elliptical trainer at home I love using.  I plan to continue to use it, so it won't be a clothing rack any time soon!

However, I miss the social aspects of the gym.  More than that, I need a place to take the kids this summer!  During the summer, getting out to go workout without having a heatstroke was always a blessing.  The kids needed the break from me, and I from them.  This time, I'm joining a gym with a pool and tons of kids' activities. Lots of my friends are members. and I hope to lounge at the pool chatting away while the kids burn off tons of energy.

Also, Steve has changed his schedule, so I want to make sure I get in workouts even if they can't be with him.  Getting three kids to the gym at 0900 borders on impossible.  Plus, they are right there with me, and I always stress myself out regarding good behavior.  The other workout time is 1800 four days a week.  I tend to work night shift a couple of nights a week, so I have to be on my way to the hospital at that point.  Have no fears, my goal is to still work out with Steve as many days each week as possible....at least three.  However, I'm trying to also make this fit into my life.  He is my trainer, and I can't make it through this year without him.

Case and point, here is this week's schedule for me.

Sunday night- work
Monday- get home from work, kids to school, MS appointment, Josh OT appointment, cook dinner, and (oh yeah) sleep at some point
Tuesday- get bloodwork, go to Monkey Joe's and plan kids' birthday party, go to gym to workout, but Steve can't make it, go home, work out on elliptical, take Josh to his pre-op appointment, go to work
Wednesday- get home from work, kids to school, go run 4 miles, pick up teacher appreciation lunches, lunch with Raj, get kids from school, crash on couch for 45 minutes, Josh has Speech therapy appointment that runs late, miss work out with Steve, dinner,
Thursday- MOPS (which I cannot live without), go join gym, workout, go to work for the night
Friday- leave work early. get Raj and Josh to go to CHOA for surgery, won't be home until 1500 or later, take care of my sweet boy
Saturday- hopefully go for a long run, then workout with Steve, take care of my little man, I think there's a birthday party to attend
Sunday- get up and run, go to church, clean, laundry, go back to work for the night

I just need to make sure I have every opportunity to squeeze in my exercise.  If we are talking schedules, my life will always be an excuse to stay fat.  I'm not going to let that happen.

I also have one other thing I'm considering......
I may be going gluten free.  Love him or hate him, Neal Boortz has really gotten me thinking about the role of gluten in my obesity and my multiple sclerosis.  Currently, I'm reading the book Wheat Belly to learn more about the problems with gluten.  It's really intriguing.  I'll let you know what I think after I finish the book.

That's all for tonight!

I'm Back

After an impromptu trip to the beach over Spring break, I'm back home.

Let's just say I didn't do too well over the past ten days......at all.  See, I have this problem call "Hand to Mouth" disease.  The symptoms of this disease is finding any food (preferably sugar and carbs), picking it up and placing it in the mouth.  Then, this process is repeated over and over and over and over again.  Yes sir, I have this disease worse than anyone I know.  In fact, it is made worse by sitting in the car for hours with candy all around.  The exacerbation I had was so severe that the stocks of the candy companies should have skyrocketed last week.

Yes, I joke, but it was not a good week for me on the diet front.

Did you know there's always some reason to eat yummy food?  Let's see, there's Easter, birthdays, trips, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and Valentine's Day to name a few.  Something has to change.  Since I'm certain the holidays are here to stay, I have to be the one to change.  Wow, that's so easy to write and so impossible to do it seems to me.

Now I have to come up with a plan since everything I've done in the past month was destroyed in one fatal swoop.

Here's my plan:
1.  Do at least 30 minutes of cardio on the days I work out with Steve.
2.  On two to three other days of the week, I will do 45-60 minutes of cardio.
3.  I will drink my water.
4.  I will write everything down.
5.  I will make an abbreviated plan to help me survive all the celebrations.

I really do hope this works.  I am DREADING the weigh in two weeks from now.  I will weep if the scale shows I haven't lost any or have gained weight.  I don't want to embarrass myself like that.  Here's hoping to a super duper successful two weeks!