Sewrella: personal

Baby to Half Marathon: The Starting Line

A couple of months ago I had a baby. A squirmy little squishy ball of love grew and lived in my tummy before he made his debut into the world via C section. It was a long, trying road but I wouldn't have it any other way.

It is worth noting that I had to have the cesarean because my not so little peanut was 10 lb 2 oz at birth! For a first pregnancy, it was safer for mom and baby to do the c section, so that's what we did! But growing a human the size of the hulk took a lot of chowing down during my pregnancy. I craved red meat, particularly cheeseburgers. Not so good for the post-baby weight gain.

Now I'm going to get real with you, because I want to be as transparent as possible. I gained 65 pounds from the time I found out I was pregnant to delivery. 65 pounds you guys! That's insane!

I've never been a petit, small framed person. However I have always worked hard at being healthy. Yes I enjoy donuts a little too much but I also love green smoothies. I get my blood moving and love to run.

So, although I've always been curvy, I've never felt overweight. Until now.

After coming home from the hospital, at my two week checkup I'd dropped 28 pounds. Hallelujah! This won't be so bad after all! Scratch that. I'm still hovering 35 pounds over my pre-pregnancy weight at 2 months postpartum.

I don't tell you all of this because it's my sob story. I tell you this to be real about the after effects of this crazy thing our bodies do: make babies.

The media now flashes images of celebrity weight loss weeks after birth. " Kim K loses 50 pounds hours after giving birth!" No. She doesn't. And neither will anyone else. But this doesn't make headlines. Maybe because it's not exciting. Maybe because it's the truth.

So here I am, spewing truth like there ain't no tomorrow. I gained a lot, more than I expected. And I don't feel like myself. I feel like I've been sliced across the middle. I feel like my limbs are heavy and immobile. I feel like my flexibility is gone. I feel tired.

What's worse, though, is that when I see a new mom with a baby younger than mine and a tummy smaller than mine, I feel like a failure. The world teaches us to compare ourselves to others. Who Wore It Best articles and TV shows that celebrate competition for attention (I'm looking at you, The Bachelor) create methods of toxic thought. And I feel guilty for thinking these things, even though I've been trained to do so.

Why go off on this tangent? Because I seen an opportunity to change the status quo. To be a bit of light and truth in an otherwise ominous conversation. I have an opportunity to help another lady out there like me.

So in an effort to love myself and my post baby body, I'm committing to being as healthy as possible (not as skinny as possible!). Fueling my body with what it needs to thrive and challenging it every day. I want to feel like myself again.

And to motivate me & keep my eye on the prize, I'll be registering for the Disney Princess Half Marathon at Walt Disney World next February!! Registration opens for this 13.1 mile race on July 12 and you bet I'll be waiting for it to open at midnight! I've always wanted to run this race but never had the motivation to train for it. Well, there is no time like the present!

Crossing that finish line after having a baby the year before will feel like I've conquered Everest, I know it.

For now I'll be chubby-girl shuffling around the neighborhood, exhausted and out of breath. But in the name of getting my body back to its previous state of health, I'll do it.

So here's to feeling confident in my own skin again, no matter what the girl next to me looks like.

No comments

, by Sewrella

personal

Welcome to the World Parker Owen!

This is perhaps my most favorite blog post ever.

And that is because today I introduce my son to all of you!

Parker, meet internet. Internet, meet Parker.

I'll give ya the skinny on how this little cutie got out here in the world and how we've been doing since.

Toward the end of my pregnancy, my doctors knew that my baby was big. Ultrasounds revealed that we were looking at about a 9lb 16oz baby when still in utero at 38 weeks. They also noticed that his head was a good size for that weight and he would continue to grow at a rate of half a pound per week. At that point, the doctors explained that it would be extremely risky for my to try to have my son on my own, not to mention unbelievably painful should I be successful. The chance of success for mom and baby was slim - even if baby Parker would come down into the birth canal, he would likely get stuck and in order to get him out at that point we would have to have an emergency cesarean section or break several of his bones to get him through. Any of these options were much more risky than going ahead with a planned cesarean and calling it a day. So even though my fiance CJ and I were not interested in a planned cesarean, we made the decision to go this route in order to keep me and the baby safe.

So on May 20 at 5am, we headed to the hospital. Bags all packed and with a wave goodbye, we were off to have a baby. When we arrived at the maternity ward, the nurses scrambled to get things started - I'd been given the wrong arrival time! I was supposed to be at the hospital at 5am, not nearly 6am when we arrived. The wonderful team rallied around me, one explaining consent forms as the other got me started on IV fluids. Before I knew it, I was being wheeled off to the operating room and CJ was gowned and ready to sit by my side.

We were separated for a few minutes while I got a giant shot in my back and before I knew it, I was on my back and ready to get started, doctors dancing all around me. Okay, they weren't dancing at all they were working very hard but it seemed to me like an elegant, choreographed routine. CJ came into the room, sat down right next to me, and I heard the doctor say "Starting!" I took a deep breath and tried to stay calm, feeling dopey from the medicine. He talked to me about how excited he was, what we would do with our baby once he was here and where we would take him. He peppered me with questions about Disney characters to keep me distracted and within minutes I hear the doctor say how big my baby looks.

Then, his first cry! Tears stream down my face and CJ looks amazed. We both cry and see the doctor bring him over to a bassinet to get checked out. Due to the angle of the table, I can't see Parker just yet but CJ can. He tells me that he has chubby arms and swollen cheeks like a baby Buddha! I hear him crying and strain to see a tiny foot or hand pop up from the bassinet. Before I know it, he is pink and wrapped in a blanket, placed on my chest.

It's hard for me to see his tiny features in the blur of the medicine I'm on. Carlos takes this photo and asks the anesthetist to take one of our new family.

After a few more snuggles, CJ and Parker go back to our room with a nurse for the rest of his checkup. I am done in the OR minutes later and am wheeled off to recovery. I take a short nap to prepare for my first moments with my new baby and CJ holds Parker for the first time, back in our room. My mom, waiting patiently, gets her turn to hold Parker next for a few moments before they meet me in recovery. There I nurse him for the first time and get acquainted with my new bestie.

After about an hour of rest we return to our room, and there we stay for 48 hours. That day my sister came to visit and loved meeting her first nephew. My mom and dad spent most of the day with us and CJ and I got to bond with our little man.

Our stay in the hospital was one of sleeplessness and complete bliss. We watched our baby open his eyes, look at us, and we fell in love. I began recovering from surgery well and Parker passed every test and checkup with flying colors.

At the 48 hour mark, my OB came in to check on my recovery and said that I looked perfect. He asked when I wanted to go home and being that I'm not one for hospitals, I said "right now." He got the paperwork going and Parker was in his going home clothes within an hour.

We discharged from the hospital and got in the car to drive home. Parker LOVED the car ride and looked at the trees outside in complete awe. He enjoyed every moment.

When we got him home, he slept almost immediately. CJ and I began to relax into the comfort of our own space with our things. No hospital beds or funny gowns. We snuggled our munchkin and took a nap.

That evening, my sister and her 4 kids came over to meet the baby. They determined that he was "cute-dorable" because neither the word cute nor adorable was enough to describe him (aw!). He slept the entire time they visited, not phased at all by their loud play.

At night Parker slept better than in the hospital and so did Mom and Dad. All of us found rest at last and began to feel more like ourselves. It really began to sink in that this little guy is all ours from now until the end of time.

Mom & 4 day old Parker are doing well, napping and loving each other more than we ever thought possible. CJ is the most helpful Dad in the world, showering us with love and helping hands, morning noon and night.

Some interesting things about our 4 day old baby:

He has amazingly strong arms and loves to "help" at nursing time
He absolutely hates being naked and screams more about that than anything else
He did not love his first bath, but loved the warm snuggles after
He's a nursing champion, eating well all day and night
His favorite place is his boppy newborn lounger
He loves to grunt and make noise
He sleeps like a miracle, usually 2-4 hours at a time
He loves his Mimi and Pop Pop, especially when they hold him
His nicknames are pumpkin, chicken nugget, baybeh, and tree frog
His mama hasn't crocheted in days because how do you tear away from that little face?

I hope you all enjoyed meeting my little bundle of love! We will spend some more time recovering and snuggling before we are blogging again, but I can't wait for all the baby things coming up for my little model!

No comments

, by Sewrella

personal

31 Days to Becoming a Better Blogger Challenge

In my blog-related travels, I came across a podcast by Darren Rowse from ProBlogger called "31 Days to a Better Blog Challenge" and immediately thought - let's do that!

And here's my thought process, as a busy mom-to-be and up-and-coming blogger: What will I be doing over the next month? Blogging my life away. And you're telling me that I can spend a few minutes every day working on growing that effort in the right direction via advice from a professional? Oh and this help is FREE? Sign me up, baby!

It's worth mentioning that in no way am I affiliated with or being prompted by Darren to write about this journey, but as I opened a Word Document to catalog the daily activities of this challenge I thought to myself, "Self, I bet this would be interesting for other bloggers like me! Or those who want to one day try blogging. Or just anybody!"

So briefly, I'll go over what to expect:

Each day I'll listen to one podcast in the series
Then I'll add on to this post BELOW with my activity or experience
At the end of the month, I'll wrap up with stats on what this challenge did for my blog!

Who wants to become a better blogger with me? (You can find this podcast series on iTunes or over on Darren's ProBlogger website!)

Day 1: Elevator Pitch

Right out of the gate, this one took me a while! Here on Sewrella I provide free crochet patterns as well as DIY tutorials and share my love for making. Is my blog all about crochet? No. Is it all about DIY? No. Do I occasionally throw in a post about being a Mom, being a Blogger, or planning a party? Yes. So how does one encompass all of that in a few short words? After wracking my brain, here is what I came up with:

Sewrella - Where you'll become a better crafter with free crochet patterns, DIY tutorials, and loads of inspiration!

Catchy, eh? What is the elevator pitch for your creative business? Comment below!

Day 2: Create a List Post

Check out mine HERE! I wrote about 5 Crochet Tools You Didn't Know You Needed.

Day 3: Promote Your Blog

Here the challenge is to promote! I've been researching and working on improving my presence on Pinterest. Just this morning I got invited to a Pinterest Group Board run by AllFreeCrochet.com that is meant to share bloggers' free patterns - score! I spent a good amount of time today rearranging and fine-tuning my Pinterest page - follow me HERE!