Baby Weight

There are many things I wish I would have known prior to conceiving and birthing little peanuts into this world. I can't help but feel I would have been so much more prepared had I known everything concerning motherhood if SOMEONE had just told me. Here is the thing though, I don't think any single mom knows or experiences "everything", not every mom feels comfortable enough to share "everything", and some moms simply don't want to scare future moms by telling them "everything" so they keep their mouths shut. Every day I am dumbfounded by something new and can't help but want to share my experiences with other moms, future moms, or the women who choose to never have children (so they can reaffirm their decision by hearing our misfortunes :).

So here we go...today the subject is about baby weight. I was under the impression with my first child that I would give birth and walk out of the hospital looking like my old self again. What I wasn't told is that most women leave the hospital looking STILL very much pregnant. How is that even fair? You walk out of those hospital doors with a newborn in your arms and a 6 month old looking preggo belly! (If you happen to be one of the very few that walk out with your pre-preggo body and abs of steel I congratulate you via my blog and secretly hate you at the same time). Luckily, baby weight is something that eventually at a snail's pace will slowlllyyyyy shed away as long as you eat healthy, exercise, or in my case burn away through the ever so hard task of sitting on my butt on the couch breastfeeding. You can burn some serious calories by simply breastfeeding. Google it!

Speaking with a friend today (who also just recently had a baby), we came to the conclusion that our inability to lose those last few stubborn pounds ultimately lies on our toddlers. Yes, we did just blame our baby weight problems on our innocent, unbeknownst two year olds. But in our defense we are completely justified in our reasoning. Two year olds eat all day long. As a matter of fact, one of my son's most used words during the day is "snack snack". Isn't it cute that he says it twice in a row? Every 20-30 minutes I am taken to either the pantry or the fridge for a "snack snack". Sometimes, if I am lucky he self serves. So what does my son's bottomless stomach pit have anything to do with my struggle to lose baby weight? Well, you try to feed another human being string cheese, cheezits, animal crackers, popsicles, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, apple sauce, pretzels, bagels, goldfish, breakfast, lunch, AND dinner WITHOUT shoving that food down your throat as well. Back when I was single and wanted to shed a few pounds, the mission was easy. I would just stay away from the kitchen and eat accordingly. Now it is a different story. I habitat with a little hungry monster who is constantly eating and because we've raised such a gentleman, sharing! I can't possibly teach him how to share without accepting his kind offers of food. That would just be straight up rude. It's honestly all about prioritizing. Washboard abs or a future model citizen? So there you have it future moms, beware of the challenges that come with losing baby weight when you have a toddler around. Can't say nobody warned you!

And while we are still on the subject of baby weight, how about we leave it at this...WHO CARES?! Yes, it is easier said than done. All women struggle with body image regardless if we just birthed a little peanut or not. I am one of them. However, I've come to the realization that at THIS moment I can afford to have a couple of extra pounds and a soft tummy if it means I get to sit with my son on the couch while he feeds me goldfish, or walk through the neighboring village together as we BOTH eat a scoop of amazing gellato (yes I often times end up finishing his). We sacrifice our bodies when we bring life into this world. Even though we are often hard on ourselves, I can bet you a million dollars that your son or daughter think you are the most beautiful person in the world, and your husband has never been more in love with the person you've become. Do yourself a favor and don't put too much attention on that baby weight you have yet to gain or lose. You will one day wish for those times when your toddler put his grimy, sticky, ice cream holding hands up to your mouth and offered you a "bite".