The first day of the rest of my life

Today is the day. The day I being my reinvention. Today I will start something, and finish it. I have to. When I look in the mirror, at a picture, all I see is fat. I realize I just had a baby 7 weeks ago, but if I don't start now, I'll be that fat mom dropping her kid off at Kindergarten come next year. I want to be comfortable in my own skin. I want to live to see Brenna & Ryker become grandparents and have left them with a good example of living healthy. I'm not saying Nazi regime type of healthy, just healthy while enjoying the small things in life. I'm not going to starve myself. I'm not going to deny myself a dessert every now and then.

I will make better choices.
I will count calories.
I will exercise. (moderately since I did just have Ryk 7 weeks ago)
I will involve my family with this trek.
I will keep a food journal and post it on here.
I will not buy any clothes until I fit into my size 12 clothes.

I am not interested in the number on the scale as much. What I really want is to be a size 8 and have a healthy BMI.


Here's a picture of me at Bren's 1st Birthday. I was about 148 pounds (I remember this because this was my pre-pregnancy weight.)

Here's a picture from this weekend. I will label this the heaviest I have been (minus my 215 ending pregnancy weight)

Today is the day. The day I being my reinvention.

Ryker Hudson is here!

Our baby boy is here finally! Ryker Hudson was born on August 27, 2010 at 7:36 am via c-section. He weighed in at 7 pounds 15.5 ounces and was 19.5 inches long. He has a head full of hair (explains the heartburn) and I just hope he becomes the kind of man I always dreamed of.

9 more days!!

9 more days until Ryker's arrival and I am so ready. I keep praying it will be sooner. My feet are CONSTANTLY swollen, the heartburn is driving me crazy and I'm pretty sure he's got to be uncomfortable in there. I'm going to walk every night until he gets here hoping I can speed things along. Either way, September 1st he will be here no matter what...it just seems like FOREVER!!!

30 week update

Today was our 30 week appointment and ultrasound. Ryker is 3 1/2 pounds, heartbeat is a strong 133 beats per minute. Poor guy is running out of space so it was hard to get good pictures of him. He was sitting on his feet and had his hands in his face. We scheduled the c-section with the hospital. Wednesday, September 1st at 8 am. Here's some ultra-sound pictures of the little Ry Guy.

Mother's Day

No monetary gifts. I think that really says more than money. My mom took us Saturday to get pictures done. I didn't know it was my gift, i really thought I was doing something for her. :) I love the pictures. Below is are a few of my faves of the Bear and I.

Adding a little prince to our mix!!

We had our 19 week appointment yesterday. We also had an ultrasound and learned that we are having a boy. I was excited to say the least. Daddy wanted a girl, but he'll be ok! His name will Ryker Hudson. Paul found the name Ryker. I squinted for a moment (probably like you did) and thought uhm, did you just misspell Ryder. Nope. Then it grew on me. It means strong and becoming rich in Dutch. It's ironically the exact same ranking as Brenna on the social security site. It's an R name which is a Howell tradition for the boys and both of our dads have R names. I wanted an H middle name to match Paul (and as Paul pointed out to also match Howell) so Hudson was added. I love it!!! Brenna & Ryker. We're blessed to have these babies! I can't wait to meet our little Ry Guy. Now on to the fun stuff---shopping and decorating.

14 Week Dr. Visit

Last Wednesday I had my 14 week check up. I didn't think ahead of time and a 3 pm appt meant Brenna had to come with me. She was very excited to go with me although at first she was concerned that she had hurt the baby. Sweet girl! When we got to the appt she was quiet then 30 minutes passes and she is all over the waiting room, testing all the boundaries she can. An hour later we finally get to see Dr. Montgomery and myself and the doctor couldn't get a word in. She talked the entire time. I'm 4 years old. I eat all my food and sleep in my bed like a big girl. Milk makes me cough and chocolate milk too! (It doesn't...not sure where she got that!!) Needless to say, the Mouth of the South will not be at any more doctor appointments!!! It would be different if I didn't have to wait an hour and half to see my dr but a 4 year old has to come up with her own diversions. It's only natural. So at 14 weeks-

1. We're now in the 2nd trimester. My morning sickness, which was few and far between is still few and far between. A new sickness set in Saturday and hopefully Pepto will solve that today.

2. I gained 5 pounds in my 1st trimester. I really have tried not being a garbage disposal. Still haven't kicked the soda habit but have definitely cut it down dramatically. And I still have bad food at times like pizza.

3. Saw the baby's heartbeat. Dr. said its normal and strong. Can't tell me the beats per minute. I am really struggling with not being as technologically advanced as my last dr but bedside manner really is more important to me.

The next appointment is April 14th and that's our big ultrasound. If the little marshmallow cooperates we'll be able to tell you if we are expecting a Mr. Jackson Benjamin or Miss. Kinley Sloane. :) I'm excited about it. Not worried because I really don't care if its a boy or girl- just want to know that development is going well. Well- and after we move and know where we will be---DECORATING will be so much fun!! :)

Girl Name Choosen

Can I say how happy I am that the girl name has been choosen!?! It's so ironic b/c i was worrying about it yesterday. Last night we went to Motherhood Maternity b/c my clothes are all snug now. I figure I might as well just buy some maternity pants. On the way home Paul says-- I like Kinley Sloane. And its like the heavens were singing. Kinley Sloane it shall be!!! I'm excited....now to narrow down a boy name.

The Name Obsession

I know everyone and their Mommas know that I am name crazed. Pregnancy has just heightened this craze. I get to pick the girl first name. Just like I did with Brenna. Paul gets to pick the boy name. I'm being a sap though and if this a girl I think its only fair that Paul have one child that has a name that he picked. He loves the name Sloane for a girl. Probably as much as I loved the name Brenna and I know it was great to see her and have this beautiful name to go with her. Sloane isn't exactly my definition of beautiful but I don't dislike it either and I really want him to have that name he loves for one of the kids. (This is our last....shutting down the factory!!). I also can't find a name that I love as equally as I do Brenna. It would just be settling. (since my sister is an arse and won't let me have Maggie!) We both like Tierney Sloane. Doesn't get great reviews but I could careless. The critics probably have children with common names that didn't take much thought. (you know, like Ashley!) I only have a love for a boy name b/c my girl name I have used but I don't get boy pick so maybe Paul's pick will flow well with my boy crush name. Just had to vent and kind of get my thoughts out of my head. Sloane Rodriguez actually doesn't sound too bad. Here's the catch...what middle name goes with Sloane. Ok i got this out so I can stop stressing and I'll wait to pick this back up until we find out the sex. 9 more weeks.

10 Week Update

Today we are 10 weeks along. I had my February check up today. All is well. Regular, run-of-the-mill appointment. I got to see the baby's heartbeat today. Heartbeat is normal. The baby was very active which is good. All my blood work came back normal which I am very excited about. Will do another gestational diabetes test at about 25 weeks. I am starting to get a bladder infection so he put me on amoxicilin. Other than that- all is well. Gained 3 pounds. Next appointment is March 10th.

Cravings: Watermelon and Cheese
The Good: Bren's excitement. She kissed my belly last night and that just put me over the moon. My pretties are larger. :)
The Bad: lack of patience, fatigue, sleeplessness, thirst, hunger pangs. I literally wake up at 2 am hungry as heck. Nausea. Clothes are getting rather snug. Pretties are sore.

Get Your Smell On...February Edition

My mom's new business, which she has excelled in (as though she would do any less...) is wickless candles. You buy a nifty candle holder and the selections are endless really. You buy the bricks of wax which some smell amazing and some make you say...who on Earth mixed this concoction up?? One of the scents is actually called Twilight...which as an enthusiast I got excited...but it smells like an old lady's attic...you know that smell!!! One of the scents is called Home Sweet Home. If you're one of the many that find refuge on your couch and a bowl of popcorn...this will let you leave work at the front door and enjoy your refuge. The wax never evaporates and if you want change your wax out, simply pour back into the brick package and put a new one in. Simple, cheap, and definitely better than waiting for your favorite Yankee candle to be the scent of the month so you don't spend $30 on a candle that you ration the burn time to make it last longer. Go ahead, be a good American and support a small business!! https://vickycurrier.scentsy.us

Here's January's Burner. Scent of the month is Berry Blush. Tart açaí berry, sweet peach nectar and tropical notes of guava, ylang-ylang and yuzu create a fresh and romantic fragrance perfect for Valentine’s Day and beyond. (This one actually excites me!!)


















Here's February's Burner. Paws...I guess if you love your pet that much, I'm not judging! Scent of the month is Vanilla Suede. Classic, comforting vanilla combined with rich amber and hints of sandalwood and spice – a cozy and subtly masculine fragrance. (because that's what I think of when I think of a pet!!)

WARNING: DO NOT FEED THE ANIMALS!!!

We've been staying at my mom's house a lot lately. Bren loves Uncle T's dog, Tyco and Tyco loves Bren. They were playing last night and I went to check on her and low and behold Bren had locked herself and Tyco in the kennel. Gotta love a 4 year olds imagination!

6 Week Update

Wednesday, January 13th was my first doctor appointment. I changed doctors prior to pregnancy because my original OBGYN had grown exponentially and for four years I kept trying to get my endometriosis taken care of but didn't feel the individual care was there. I changed to Dr. Montgomery in Cypress. I am pretty confident with Dr. Montgomery. He really takes the time to see each patient. We are officially due on September 10th. We will do a scheduled c-section a week before that so maybe a Labor Day baby? We did an ultrasound. Not much to see at 6 weeks but did see the sac. It was just a normal OBGYN prenatal appointment, not much to report. The doctor give me a book and it had a lunar calendar in it. There's so many out there and recently the calendar has failed me. This one has been accurate for all thus far. So according to this calendar its a boy!! I go back in February and will have an ultrasound at 12 weeks and 20 weeks so I'll report back then.

Happy New Year

2010 has started out with quite a bang. On 12/28 (ironically, this was Brenna's due date!) we found out we are expecting our 2nd bundle of joy. We are excited to welcome this blessing into our lives. I hope and pray that it is a healthy and easy pregnancy and the baby is healthy. Brenna is excited. Her reaction was so cute. She said, "Mommy, do you have to go to the hospital?" Me: Yes, just to have the baby. Bren: Ok, then I don't want you to have the baby. LOL. She wants a sister unless the brother comes with a sister! LOL. Bless her heart. And she has named the baby Marshmallow so hence the ticker title, "Our Little Marshmallow" The boy name has been chosen but the girl name is still up in the air but we have 9 months thankfully!! It will be an eventful 9 months for sure. Our lease is up in May so we will be moving to a bigger place then. I'm excited and looking forward to 2010.