Baby Phat

I've been blessed to have easy pregnancies and labor/deliveries. I loved being pregnant- feeling my babies move inside of me, getting a belly, lots of attention everywhere you go. And, I even loved the birth process. You can't beat one hour of labor and a few pushes!!

In all of this there is one thing I don't love. Being fat after having a baby. I guess I should have said another thing I loved about being pregnant is eating anything I want, when I want. During the first few months of morning sickness, yucky time I usually eat carbs constantly to settle my stomach. Which in turn, sets the precedent of eating for the rest of my pregnancy. Of course, I don't tell myself that I can't eat like that. I, actually, tell myself to eat healthy and in moderation and only gain 25-35lbs. But, myself didn't listen! I did eat healthy each time. Making sure I got enough protein, fruits and veggies, and whole grains. I, also, got plenty of cookies, ice cream, and other sweets.

With Judah I gained 60 lbs and with Silas and Samuel I gained 55. I lose the first 20 probably before I even leave the hospital. I've lost about 48 so far. So, I don't have too far to go to my pre-Silas weight (at least the weight I was at my first midwife appointment). I'd like to lose 10 more after that to get back to my pre-Judah weight.

After having Judah I really struggled with being "fat." None of my clothes fit and I just felt really unattractive and gross for a long time. Probably until I had lost most of the weight. After having Samuel I still felt those same feelings, but not as strongly. I kind of just ignored it and didn't think much about what I looked like. I had lots of other things to do!

This time I've taken a whole new approach. I'm going to embrace the baby weight! When I look around I see beautiful women of all different sizes. I really don't think that weight or pants size equals beauty, so I don't know why I have that standard for myself. After having Judah and Samuel I bought almost no new clothes. I didn't want to spend money on "big" clothes that I wouldn't wear for very long. This time I decided I'm going to look good. I've bought lots of cotton jersey dresses that will stretch with my size and I feel like I look put together, not just wearing clothes that are too big or shirts that are too small with a long tank top underneath (that's what I did after having Samuel and, also, while pregnant with Silas!

I'm going to continue to excercise, eat healthy, and lose weight (I even started a new blog just for that.) But for now, I'll give myself grace knowing that I just had a baby.

What about all of you? How do you deal with your post-partum body?


-----------
Help! Can anyone tell me how to email the people that leave comments? How can I see their email addresses? I want to be able to respond to everyone. Especially from my post about wanting a certain sex. Thanks for all of your great comments and opinions!