19 months, 60 lbs. and 1 child ago

[stephanie_b]

Okay, so it's been forever since I've checked in. Actually, I think I set up my page, wrote a post or two, and never returned. So...a quick version of my life from then to now.

I had our third child, Kyah, in December of 2008. Impatient from the beginning, she was born a month early. Doesn't seem to have affected her in any way - she's a normal, happy holy terror, just like her older brother and sister.

Shortly after Kyah was born, I made the mistake of stepping on the bathroom scale. 215 pounds - AFTER giving birth. I didn't weigh that when I was nine and a half months pregnant with my 11 pound son. Major problem. I cried for an hour or so, vowed to give up carbs in all shapes and sizes, and considered becoming bulemic, except that after morning sickness for nine months straight, I just couldn't bring myself to throw up anymore.

Fast forward two months, and I hadn't lost anything. Actually, I think I gained. Not sure, because after the first trip to the scale, you'd have to tranquilize me to get me back on the damn thing. Cried for a day and begged my husband to get me gastric bypass for my birthday. He laughed and told me there was just "more to love." I fantasized about hit him in the head with a two by four.

The turning point came during a lunch date with a friend who I hadn't seen in a long while, and her five year old daughter. After I'd eaten  the entire monster cheeseburger, downed four or five sodas, and contemplated dessert, my friend's daughter looked at her mother and said in a stage whisper - "She sure has grown since the last time we saw her, mommy."

Ugh.

Kyah will be a year old in December, and since she was born, I've lost 60 pounds, which puts me at 155. Still not ecstatic about it, but it's WAY more within my comfort zone. I can once again buy the cute clothes out of the junior's section. My jeans button without the help of dynamite. Love handles are (mostly) gone.

The kids are growing. Quinton is in second grade this year, with a teacher who actually seems to care. He's reading at a seventh grade level, so I guess the year of homeschool did some good. Savannah turned two in June and is so smart it's frightening sometimes. And the gray hair I've developed over the last few years is covered well by Clairol.

All in all, things are great. I'm excited to be back, and hope to meet some fun new people here. Feel free to friend me, mail me - whatever. As a stay at home mom, any adult conversation during the day is absolutely welcome.

[ryleesmommy2009]

Oct. 20, 2009 at 4:40 PM

so how in the world did you lose it i'm having the same problem its driving me nuts!!

[stephanie_b]

Oct. 20, 2009 at 4:45 PM

Find an online diet site. Mostly they're free (don't pay for one). I use 411fit.com. You can enter everything you eat every day and it will tally up your calories for you. You can also enter everything you do that might possibly burn calories, from folding laundry to running a marathon, and it will tell you exactly how many calories you've burned. Once I started entering everything in and seeing how many calories I REALLY ate a day vs. how many calories I THOUGHT I ate, it was really easy to find where I could cut back. That, and switching to diet soda, because I'm a freak with caffeine. I would drink almost 1000 of my calories a day just in soda. You just have to be dedicated...and check out the website. I know I sound like I'm promoting it or something, but it really worked for me.

(Original Poster)