Healthy Tipping Point

This past Sunday was a fun Day in the Life for me to record because it was my “Henry Day.”  The Husband and I really want to make an effort to do things alone with each kid – not just when they are little, but when they are bigger, too.  Obviously, Claire doesn’t appreciate this too much right now, but Henry sure does!  The Husband takes Henry to soccer lessons once a week; my alone time with him is more spontaneous (and harder to schedule because of Claire’s age).  Here’s what we did!

4:00 AM:

Claire wakes up and eats 3.5 ounces off a bottle that I pumped earlier.  I lay her down and she spits up EVERYWHERE. I frantically strip the first sheet layer off and manage to save the second sheet (pro parenting tip – double up sheet layers for moments like this!). I manage to get her back down at 4:22.  I don’t fall asleep until 5 AM.

6:36 AM:

Claire wakes up to breastfeed.

7:30 AM:

Claire wakes up AGAIN to breastfeed.

8:45 AM:

Claire and I get out of bed.  She is super smiley!  The Husband had gotten up with Henry; I hear them downstairs eating breakfast.  I pump off a bottle and feed Claire.

9:15 AM:

I go downstairs and eat breakfast.  I have a peanut butter-rich smoothie with strawberries and spinach mixed in.  I also have a giant coffee.  Kristien and I discuss the day – he wants to hang out with his mom while she runs errands, so we decide to split up the kids; he’ll take Claire and I’ll take Henry.

10:00 AM:

I start the process of getting ready to leave for the playground.

10:30 AM:

Henry and I leave.  It takes me eons to leave the house these days!  We go to the playground for a while.  Some parents are smart enough to bring towels to wipe down the wet slides – geniuses!  We have a snack at the park.

11:45 AM:

Go get my car washed and vacuumed.  My car was DISGUSTING and will probably be disgusting again in, oh, a week.  But for now – it’s really clean!  Yay!

12:15 PM:

We go to lunch at Whole Food’s.  Henry really likes picking his food out at the hot bar.  It’s wonderful to have lunch out with just the two of us!  Afterwards, we get ice cream from the gelato station.  Henry now believes that I’m the bestest, coolest mom ever.

1:00 PM:

Head home.  Kristien, Claire, and my in-laws get back around the same time that we do.  I say hi to everyone and chat for a bit and then I take Henry upstairs to nap at 1:20 PM.

1:25 PM:

Pump a bottle.  Unfortunately, on this day, I get “ahead” of Claire with pumping, so I end up pumping all of her feeds during the day instead of actually breastfeeding her. I prefer to breastfeed her when we’re at home and use bottles when we’re out, but sometimes that means that we get off rhythm.  Oh well!

1:35 PM:

Go downstairs and do some work.  At 2:00 PM, Kristien gives me Claire because he’s heading out to meet a friend for racquetball.  I head upstairs with her for a bit to cuddle.  I put her down for her nap after about ten minutes.  Both kids are asleep at the same time!  WAHOO!  I race downstairs and start frantically working.

3:35 PM:

Stop work and pick up living room.  I do a living room pick-up every day at nap time; it keeps me from going crazy over the kiddie chaos that inevitably happened in the morning.  Throw some laundry in.

3:50 PM:

I do 20 min of PiYo before getting nervous Claire and Henry are going to wake up.  I stop the DVD because I need to do some other things before they gets up.

4:15 PM:

Make a snack and eat it while pumping a bottle.  Quickly hop in the shower and rinse off.

4:30 PM:

Henry is awake in his bed and playing. He’s really awesome about just hanging out in his room, regardless of whether he’s asleep or not (he didn’t actually take a three hour nap; it took him a while to go to sleep).  I go into my room and get Claire up, too.  She has a bottle, and then we wake up Henry.  The three of us play, read books, eat snacks, and do a little cooking.

5:45 PM:

Kristien is home again!  We go for a walk.  Henry and I play with sticks (a favorite pastime) until one of the neighbor’s kids come outside.  They chase the dogs around for a long time – the sun goes down on us!

6:25 PM:

We eat dinner (I go back for seconds of everything), clean up, and then have a living room dance/singing party to Ed Sheeran, who the Husband is obsessed with.   Claire takes a cat nap in her Dad’s arms.

7:00 PM:

I start Henry’s bedtime routine.  He takes a bath while I pump again. Kristien brings Claire in; she sits on the side of the counter and looks insanely sleepy.  We swap kids – Kristien takes over with Henry, puts him in pajamas, and sings him football fight songs and the British national anthem.

7:30 PM:

I start reading this week’s Book of the Week.  Claire is CRABBY so I put her in her swing for a bit, hoping it calms her down.  She is a very easy baby overall but has fussy moments at night. 

7:45 PM:

She was okay for a bit, but now she is crying.  She wants to be bounced in my lap.  I bounce her until my biceps hurt!  I decide that it’s really time to get her on a schedule. 

8:00 PM:

I think she’s sleepy so I swaddle her and try to put her down in her bassinet.  It doesn’t work – she gets fussier and fussier. Her sleep schedule is totally off, and she’s super grumpy. Poor girl! I give her a bottle. Still doesn’t work.  The only thing that really helps is doing ‘baby bicycle legs.’ At 8:25, my patience is kind of shot so I bring her to Kristien, who is our family’s Baby Whisper (I suck at calming babies but rock at dealing with toddlers – at least we each have a useful superpower!).  He takes over pumping her legs and gets her to stop crying and fall asleep.

8:40 PM:

We put a sleeping Claire (whew!!!) in her swing and watch Parenthood (all the tears!) and Girls (I laughed so hard).

10:00 PM:

I tidy up, pump another bottle, and wash my face.  I prep the coffee maker for tomorrow AM and hit “delay brew.”

10:15 PM:

I take Claire out of her swing, dream feed her 1.5 ounces, and go to bed.  She wakes up to eat at 1:30 AM and 5:15 AM – not too shabby!   I actually don’t mind the nighttime wake-ups with Claire because it’s our special quiet time together.  <3 <3 <3

This post is sponsored by Bombas.

You don’t need much to be a runner.  A pair of sneakers and some comfy clothes and you’re off.  But to take it to the next level, it definitely helps to have some running-specific gear.  So here’s a list of a few of my favorite running items. 

I have tested out a lot of specialty running socks, and the bottom line is that a quality running sock is always better than the cheap-o cotton ones you buy in giant packs at Target.  I’ve found that the two most important parts of running socks are the fabric (sweat-wicking is clutch) and a little extra ‘bump’ above the heel so it doesn’t slip down into your shoe.

I’ve been testing out the Bombas socks and have nothing but awesome things to say about them!  Not only are they great socks, but for every pair of Bombas you purchase, the company donates a pair to someone in need. Did you know that socks are the #1 requested item at homeless shelters? Since launching in October of 2013, Bombas has donated over 300,000 socks.  Pretty cool.

Bombas socks aren’t just good for the community – they are really awesome socks!  The company spent two years on research and development to make the smartest athletic socks around.  Improvements include: “stay up” technology (I wore the calf socks on four mile run and they didn’t slip down at all), a blister tab to prevent chafing, and a reinforced footbed.  The socks are made of something called long staple pima cotton, which has natural moisture-wicking properties. My feet stayed a perfect temperature and never got sweaty in these socks. 

They come in an array of fun colors and lengths!

Check out the socks at the Bombas website, and use the code TIPPING20 to get 20% off your order (and remember, for every sock you buy, a pair gets donated!).

No matter your chest size, a great sports bra is a wonderful thing. But if you’re ‘endowed,’ a well-fitting bra is pretty much essential.  I’ve written a lot about my favorite sports bras:

Sports Bras Part I

Sports Bras Part II

Plus – How to Wash a Sports Bra.

Here’s why I love running in hats so much – a hat holds back your hair so you don’t have to mess with it, blocks the sun from your eye, and helps protect your skin from sun damage.  But if you’ve ever run in a cotton hat, you know it quickly gets quite steamy on your head.  That’s why you need a sweat-wicking hat!

I don’t have a favorite hat to recommend – most of mine are race freebies.  But I do really love my sweat-wicking visors; they’re a great hat alternative when it’s so hot out that even a breathable running hat is too warm.

Click through to read the rest of the post.

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Spontaneous decision this weekend – I decided to run a race!

My friend Brandi and her husband Jay were doing the Charlotte Health and Fitness 4 Miler.  On Friday night, she invited me to tag along.  After walk/running 4 miles last weekend, I knew I’d be able to complete the race… plus, I really needed some major motivation to exercise. 

The race didn’t start until 1:30, which was amazing!  Love afternoon races.  I had time to be with the kids, go grocery shopping, and clean up the house before I had to head out.  And all morning long, I was so excited – I was practically giddy to toe a starting line! 

We got there plenty early because I had to do race-day registration.  The weather was wonderful, so we didn’t mind hanging out.

Brandi and I talked about our goals – she wanted to do a 10-minute mile.  Since I had walk/run 4 miles the previous weekend in an hour, I decided my goal was to do under 50 minutes and to “actually try.”  I wanted to feel my heart pounding! Sweat dripping down my face! My legs aching!  Know what I mean?

The race was very small and low-key, which is my favorite kind of race.  When the announcer said, “Go!” I hung back in the crowd and let Brandi and Jay go ahead of me.  The course was two loops and included both road running and off-road running.  I ran the entire first two miles at a good clip, only stopping to walk once, and crossed the halfway point in 21:20 – not too shabby!

At this point, because the course looped back on itself, I spotted Brandi and Jay.  They were about 1:30 in front of me, and I had a crazy idea that I could catch up.  So I really put the pedal to the metal and pushed it.

I ended up taking a dive in the grass…  Ugh.

But I quickly popped up and kept going.  I closed in on my friends towards the end – over the last mile, I got closer and closer and closer.  I didn’t want to call out because I knew that Brandi and Jay would either slow down to let me join them or speed up to beat me – hah!  But I really wanted to catch them and finish together.  I was SO CLOSE but couldn’t quite get to them before the finish line.  I ended up being just 3 seconds behind them – almost eliminating a 1:30 gap and running a wonderful negative split.

Finish Time: 41:21

Pace: 10:20

9th out of 17 in my age group!

I’ve decided that I’ve kind of been phoning in my workouts and can probably train a bit harder.  I am truly surprised that I could do 4 miles at a 10:20 pace – I really didn’t exercise much in the last few months of pregnancy (besides walking) and thought that I’d be starting from the bottom of the barrel.  I don’t know how this happened… Maybe it’s all that toddler-chasing.  But I’ll take it any day!  Bodes well for triathlon season.

Did you run a race this weekend?

One thing I’ve noticed about Round 2 – we use a lot less stuff.  Maybe Claire is just an ‘easier’ baby (true) or maybe we’re just more low-maintenance in general (definitely true, too).  But there are some things that I can’t imagine getting through each day without.  Here’s a list of the gear we love!

This Swaddle:

I refused to consistently swaddle Henry because I didn’t want to make him “dependent” on it.  This time around, I feel like, “SCREW IT. I AM WILLING TO DO WHATEVER WORKS.” Guess who’s been sleeping better?  Yup.  Me (and Claire!).  I was using light, cotton swaddles, but MomHTP suggested I try to find a fleece one.  I love this swaddle because it’s super comfy-cozy and doesn’t seem so “trappy” – just snug.  Also, it’s a sleep sack as well, so you can unzip it from the bottom and change a diaper without unswaddling the baby.  The first time I put Claire in it, she slept 8 hours straight but has since done a bunch of 4 and 5 hour stretches.

This Co-Sleeper:

I started off with a bassinet that a friend loaned me but soon switched to the Arm’s Reach Co-Sleeper.  This thing is amazing.  You can “roll” down one of the sides so there is only a small wall between your bed and the baby’s, which means you can look in at the baby without sitting up (score!) and keep your hand on the baby’s chest without having to awkwardly drape your arm over a high side.  Also, I think that, because there’s no big bassinet wall between you and the baby, the baby sleeps better – she can see you instead of just looking at a wall, and she can hear you better, too.  It feels like you’re in the same bed without being in the same bed (which, personally, make me nervous, and I don’t sleep well).  Also – the mattress on this is significantly thicker than the bassinets I’ve used, which I think helps sleep, too.

This Pump:

Same one that I used last time – I still love it.  It’s a great pump.  It’s fast, efficient, and I haven’t had any problems with it over 8 months of exclusive pumping with Henry and daily pumping with Claire. 

Actually, I owe you all a breastfeeding post because I know some people are interested.  Basically, things are going better than they did with Henry. I do a combo of breastfeeding (usually in the mornings and during nighttime wake-ups) and bottles (during the day when we’re out). It’s a combo that works well for me.  My master plan is to pump off an extra bottle every day and will probably stop breastfeeding Claire around the same time I did Henry (I’m thinking six to eight months is when I’ll hit my limit) and then wean her, switch to frozen milk, and then transition her to formula after my frozen supply runs out.  I’m  comfortable with this plan – and that makes me happy because the entire Henry feeding saga made me very unhappy.

This Lounger:

The Boppy lounger was one of my favorite products with Henry, and I love it for Claire, too.  I ended up buying a second one (one for upstairs and downstairs) and it’s worth every penny.  It’s super clutch when you need to put the baby down somewhere (like when you’re getting dressed in the middle of the hallway before driving your toddler to school, as in the pic above!).

This Snot Sucker:

This is one of those weird parenting tools that you can’t imagine you’ll need and then can’t imagine living without. Claire gets a lot of boogers (I think because of the heater being on all the time), and this gadget (plus some saline spray) makes removing them super easy. 

This Swing:

I’m sure there are tons of great swings on the market, but I still really like our old one.  Mostly because you can rotate it three ways so the baby can be swung in different directions.  Swings are a LIFESAVER.  Again, I am less worried about making Claire “dependent” on sleep aids as I was Henry (I just want to effing sleep!), so we use freely the swing for calming, falling asleep, and some naps.  With two kids, it’s especially useful – like having two hands!

These Booties:

Another thing we loved with Henry and love for Claire.  In fact, I bought her another pair so she has her brother’s old ones and some newbies.  These booties are SO great because, unlike baby socks, they do not fall off.  Ever.  She wears hers every single day.  (Side note: they shrink a bit in the washer/dryer, so order size 6 months for a newborn and after a washing, it will fit fine with tons of room to grow).

Here are Henry’s baby gear posts… It’s funny for me to read these – I no longer use a diaper bag [a big purse works just fine] or a baby bathtub [I just get in the bath with her or bathe her in the sink].  Henry hated the swing and his Boba carrier, but Claire loves both!

Newborn Baby Gear We Love (Henry Edition)

4.5 Months: Baby Gear We Love (Henry Edition)

8.5 Months: Baby Gear We Love (Henry Edition)