Weigh In Wednesday

It's been two weeks since my last weight loss post because we have had a very rough last couple of weeks here at the Richardson house.  Ryleigh has been fighting a tough cough for almost two weeks now, plus she had a few days where she was fighting some sort of stomach bug.  Then, of course it wouldn't be fair if both Mommy and Daddy didn't catch some form of said stomach bug as well.  It seemed that as soon as someone got better, the next one went down.  So needless to say, we've been a little preoccupied over here.

Through it all I was able to pretty much stay on track diet wise...exercise is another story.  I was a little sleep deprived a few days from my sleepless nights between Ryleigh & Cooper.  Then I was feeling a little weak from my allotted sick days.  Then after that I was on full time kid (and Daddy) duty because it was Daddy's turn to feel under the weather.  So once again, exercise has taken a back seat to everything else.  I have a little over one month left of my maternity leave and I am determined to stay focused the rest of the way!  I have made an exercise plan for the month and have posted it up on the wall so I can mark off the days as I go.

The Weight Watchers is going wonderfully and the hubby is being such a good sport.  We've definitely had some misses in my recipe selections, but he never says a word...just eats whats in front of him without complaints.  He might be keeping his mouth shut because he has actually lost 10 pounds himself, so maybe he's secretly happy with the change in nutrition.  He did steer me adrift a little bit this past weekend, but I know he can only take so much.

Since the last time I posted I have lost 3 pounds...

so not that great, but enough to keep me feeling motivated and happy.  Also, I'm starting to see the changes in how my clothes fit and I'm fitting into more and more of my pre-pregnancy clothes as the weeks go. Hopefully I can stay motivated with my work outs so I can start toning up a little bit more too.  Keep your fingers crossed!

Honey BBQ Meatloaf (8 points) with Smashed Potatoes (3 points) & Green Beans

Honey Barbecue Meatloaf

makes 4 servings   8 WW points/serving

1 lb 90% lean ground beef
½ cup panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard
3/4 cup smoky barbecue sauce, divided
2 tablespoons honey, divided
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl, use your hands to mix together the ground beef, panko, 2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce, the spicy brown mustard, 1/2 cup of the barbecue sauce, 1 tablespoon honey, salt, and black pepper.
Shape the mixture into a long, thick log and place in an oiled baking dish. Be careful not to pack the meat too tightly or you’ll end up with a very dense, tough loaf.
In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup barbecue sauce, 1 tablespoon honey, and 2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce. Spread half of this mixture evenly all over the meatloaf. Reserve the other half for serving.
Bake for 45 minutes. Slice and drizzle with reserved honey barbecue sauce.

Smashed Potatoes with Sour Cream & Chives
makes 4-3/4 cup servings    3 WW points/serving

1 1/4 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes (about 4), chopped

1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth, warmed
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
1 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives
salt & pepper

Boil potatoes until fork-tender, about 12-15 minutes.
Drain potatoes and return to their pot.  Add the warm broth and coarsly mash.  Stir in sour cream and chives.  Season with salt & pepper.

Wonton Tacos (5 points) with broccoli & carrots

These Wonton Tacos have been around Pinterest for a while now and I finally decided to make them.  For some reason we actually had wonton wrappers in our fridge and when I figured out the points it turns out 4 of these tacos are only 5 points!!  They are from hungry-girl.com and they actually were pretty delicious.  The only thing is the recipe tells you to drape your wonton wrapper over the side of a baking dish and bake them in order to create the "taco" shape, but this makes the opening very small & frankly I could barely fit any stuffing in the taco because it was so tight.  So I would recommend finding somthing a little wider to use in order to form your wonton taco shape because once they're cooked and shaped, they aren't budging!

Wonton Tacos

makes 2 servings   5 WW points/serving

8 small square wonton wrappers

4 oz. cooked skinless lean chicken breast, shredded
2 Tbsp BBQ sauce with about 45 calories per 2-tbsp. serving
3/4 cup dry coleslaw mix
2 Tbsp Newman's Own Lite Low Fat Sesame Ginger dressing

2 Tbsp chopped cilantro  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

To make the wonton shells, spray the inside and outside walls of a deep square or rectangular baking pan with nonstick spray. Evenly drape wonton wrappers over the pan's walls on a diagonal, making triangle-shaped "shells." (Use two pans, if needed, to keep wontons from overlapping.) Bake for 3 - 4 minutes, until just crispy enough to hold their shape. Remove pan from the oven and set aside to cool.

Combine chicken with BBQ sauce in a bowl and mix well. Set aside.
In a microwave-safe bowl, combine coleslaw mix, dressing, and cilantro. Mix well. Microwave for 45 seconds, until slightly softened. Set aside.

Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray. One at a time, carefully remove wonton shells from the pan and fill each with a heaping tablespoon of BBQ chicken and a heaping teaspoon of cilantro slaw. Lay filled wontons gently on their sides on the baking sheet.

Spray the upward-facing sides of the wonton shells lightly with nonstick spray (for added crispiness) and bake for about 5 minutes, until warm and crunchy. Let cool slightly and serve!

Cooper is One Month!

Cooper at One Month

(February 14, 2013)

At the Richardson house we are not only celebrating Valentine's Day today, we are also celebrating Cooper's one month!  It's hard to believe that it has only been one month since our little guy graced us with his presence.  So much has happened these past 30 days that it seems like he has been here much longer.  Since being born, Cooper has had visits from his Yaya & Poppi; Uncle Jason, Aunt Bekah & cousin Olivia; and his Gammy.  Not to mention all the family and friends he has met via Facetime!

Cooper has been doing a great job adjusting to "life on the outside".  He's eating like a champ and continues to gain weight & grow by the day.  He has grown out of his newborn diapers and is now sporting the Ones and he can fit into most of his 3 month clothes.  If I had to guess, I'd say our little guys weighs a little over 10 pounds now.

He was doing a wonderful job sleeping and we were even able to get a few 5 1/2 hour spans out of him, but for some reason, this past week has been difficult.  He is deciding to sleep in 2 hour increments throughout the night and instead of eating 3-4oz at a time he is only eating 1-2oz at a time, but more often.  We're hoping to get him on some sort of schedule here shortly though...as soon as we can figure out how to do that : /

Ryleigh is adjusting to life with baby Cooper wonderfully.  She loves giving him his binkie, covering him up with blankets and giving him hugs & kisses before bedtime.  She isn't overly interested though, which is actually very nice-she gives him just the right amount of attention.  She tells me numerous times that she "loves baby Cooper" and when he cries she pats his little head and says "it's OK baby Cooper, Mommy fix it".  It really is adorable to watch her grow into a big sister : )  He is one lucky little boy.

Mommy & Daddy are still adjusting to life with two children as well.  We have been on our own with no helpers for about two weeks now and we seem to be falling into a little routine.  I'm not going to lie though, it is difficult balancing everything.  While I don't want to wish these first few months away, I do look forward to the months when Cooper is finally sleeping through the night and we are more in tune with him so we can easily figure out what he needs. 

Things are still fairly new right now and we're still getting to know our little guy, but one thing I am happy to share is that Mommy sure knows how to get him to smile : )  A few days ago Cooper had his first legit smile and he's been flashing those adorable little smiles at Mommy almost everyday since!  We are very excited about what the next few months bring and for Cooper to become more interactive with us and Ryleigh.

with Yaya

with Poppi

Cooper, Ryleigh & Olivia

all the kiddos

Olivia was eyeing that binkie

Uncle Jason, Aunt Bekah, Olivia, Daddy & Cooper

Ryleigh & Mommy are missing from this photo because someone decided to throw a fit and ruin it

Cooper, Yaya, Ryleigh, Poppi & Olivia

snuggles!

what our Saturday mornings look like now

not sure if Lucy likes the blanket or the baby more?

sometimes playmats are exhausting

Daddy's idea of a swaddle

one of Coopers first real smiles : )

Happy Valentines Day!

Ryleigh loves Cooper

Weigh In Wednesday

It's been a little over a week since I started my weight loss journey and I am happy to report that this week I lost....

2.8 pounds

So that makes 3.8 pounds total!  I'm very happy with the result considering I haven't been able to exercise as much as I would have liked.  I am finding that trying to fit everything in is a lot harder to do when there are two children instead of just one.  Shocking, I know.

The week started out really well.  I was able to exercise a few days in a row, which made me feel really good...sore, but good.  I couldn't believe how difficult it was to work out!  I had waited a good 3 months before I started exercising after having Ryleigh and I really feel that made a huge difference.  Exercising 3 weeks postpartum is super hard!  On that third day in a row I found myself struggling to get through some of the movements.  It was like my brain was telling my legs to do something and they just were not able to respond.  They literally did not move.  And crunches?  Heck no.  My abs are still sore from their work out 2 days ago.  Sadly, as the week progressed, exercising began taking a back seat to other things.  Like sleep...and showering...and chores.  I find I'm having to choose between the things that need to get done and Cooper only sleeps in like 45 minute-1 hour increments at a time during the day.  Also, Ryleigh had a fever this week, so she was home 2 days and of course their naptimes didn't magically match up like I had hoped.  So hopefully in this next week with Ryleigh at daycare more I will be able to squeeze in some more exercise.  But of course that will depend on how Cooper's nighttime sleep schedule plays out & how little sleep I'm having to function on...so far, it's looking like naps for Mommy will out weigh exercise : /

The Weight Watchers diet has been super easy to stick to.  The points system is really simple and I am always amazed at how much I can eat without going over.  Especially with the extra weekly alloted points, I never run over.  In fact, with my weight loss this past week, my points allotment has actually gone down, which I can only assume is a good thing.  A step in the right direction :  )   I was able to find a few good recipes this week as well, so be sure to check those out below.

So far things are going well and my spirits are still high.  I am optimistic about my progress and look forward to another successful week ahead : )

Cabbage Soup- 0 points

Cabbage Soup

makes 6 one cup servings  0 WW points/serving

This soup is pretty yummy and filling.  I decided to make it since I had a lot of leftover cabbage from when I was trying to "dry up", haha (Mommas will know what I'm talking about).  Since it's 0 points per serving, you can really eat as much of it as you'd like.  You can also change it up and make different variations by switching vegetables and seasonings.  This is the version I went with:

3 cups nonfat beef broth

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cups chopped cabbage

1/2 yellow onion

1/2 cup chopped carrot

1/2 cup green beans

1/2 cup chopped zucchini

1/2 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon oregano

salt & pepper

Spray pot with non stick cooking spray saute onions carrots and garlic for 5 minutes.

Add broth, Tomato paste, cabbage, green beans, basil, oregano and Salt & Pepper to taste.

Simmer for a about 5-10 minutes until all vegetables are tender then add the zuccini and simmer for another 5 or so minutes.

Creamy Chicken Penne- 7 points

Creamy Chicken Penne

makes 6 one cup servings   7 WW points/serving

  

8 ounces uncooked multigrain penne pasta
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen small broccoli florets
1 cup fat free half-and-half
4 ounces Neufchâtel cheese, cubed
1 teaspoon oregano leaves
1 teaspoon rosemary leaves, finely crushed
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan 

Cook pasta in large saucepan as directed on package, adding broccoli during the last 3 minutes of cooking. Drain well.
Meanwhile, bring half-and-half to simmer in small saucepan on medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add cream cheese, oregano, rosemary, thyme, garlic powder and sea salt; whisk until cheese is melted and sauce is well blended. Add chicken; simmer until heated through.
Place pasta and broccoli in large serving bowl. Spoon sauce evenly over pasta mixture. Toss gently to coat well. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

Battle of the Bulge: Take Two

Well it's Wednesday and I am on my third day of diet and exercise post Cooper.  I gained a total of 47lbs while I was pregnant with Cooper (the exact same amount I gained with Ryleigh, crazy huh?), but when I started this diet on Monday I had already lost 22lbs. so that leaves 25lbs left to lose.

Now before I move on, I'd like to take a moment to congratulate myself on something.  I worked really hard to lose weight after Ryleigh and I ended up losing about 60lbs total with her. And when I became pregnant again 19 months later, I had only gained 7 of those 60lbs back.  I mean, that's pretty good, right?  Now, I wasn't living quite as healthy of a lifestyle as I started out with when I began dieting, but I am proud that I was able to stay below the weight I was at when I got pregnant with Ryleigh : )

So, this time around my goal is to lose 32lbs, which will take me down to the weight I was at when I lost those 60lbs all those many months ago.  I have already signed up and started tracking my meals using Weight Watchers.  I used this a couple months after having Ryleigh and it worked really well for me.  I will also be exercising at home when I can because while Ryleigh can go to daycare, Cooper will not be enrolled until April when I go back to work.  I hope to have lost all 32lbs by the time I return to work on April 8 since I know that it will be very difficult to work, exercise, diet and take care of 2 children once the time comes.  I'd really like to be in the "managing" my weight process at that point, not in the losing process anymore.

So now that the goals are set and the first post has been blogged, I am now officially holding myself accountable for what happens with this weight loss.  I will be posting my progress weekly on Wednesdays, so be sure to check in and see how I'm doing.  Feel free to offer words of encouragement and also feel free to scold me when I've done bad : /  Also say a prayer for my poor husband who will have to endure my culinary change.  It will be hard for him, so keep him in your thoughts as he is forced to diet right along with me.

Since I started my regimen on Monday but have decided to blog on Wednesdays, I'll go ahead and post my weight loss over the past three days.  So far, I have lost.....

1 pound

Yay!  This makes me excited to see what I can accomplish in a whole week : )  See you next Wednesday!


Baked Ziti with Turkey Sausage
makes 8 servings   8 WW points/serving

3/4 lbs. uncooked turkey sausage, casings removed
1 medium uncooked onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
28oz. canned diced tomatoes
10oz. frozen green peas, thawed
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp fennel seed
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
12oz uncooked whole wheat pasta
6oz shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Crumble the sausage meat in a large saucepan and brown over medium heat, stirring often, about 4 minutes.
Drain off any fat, then add the onion and bell pepper. Cook, stirring often, until softened, about 3 minutes.
Stir in the tomatoes, peas, tomato paste, oregano, basil, thyme, fennel seeds, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat and cook uncovered 5 minutes, stirring often.
Stir in the cooked pasta and half the cheese. Spread evenly into a 9- X 13-inch baking pan. Top evenly with the remaining cheese.
Bake until the cheese has melted and the casserole is bubbling, about 20 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes at room temperature before slicing into 8 pieces.

Yields 1 piece per serving. Recipe from weightwatchers.com

Coopers Arrival

Now that we have had all of our visitors and things have started to fall into routine around here, I figured I better get up some pictures and tell the story of Coopers arrival.  Now, let me tell you, when they say "every labor and delivery is different", it's the truth!  Cooper's journey could not have been any more different than Ryleigh's!

First of all, Cooper was a lazy boy.  He was determined to spend as much time on the inside as possible.  Based on his measurements, the fact that I went 6 days early with Ryleigh, and that he is a boy, I NEVER thought I would make it to my due date.  But Cooper had other plans.  We waited...and waited...and waited.  Christmas came, and went.  New Years came, and went.  My due date came, and went.  I went to the doctor on January 10 (my due date) and we decided to go ahead and schedule the induction.  The doctor didn't seem too worried since he believed Cooper had yet to reach 9 pounds, so that relaxed me a little bit.  We scheduled the induction for January 14...no way I would make it that long.  Wrong.  At 5:30am on January 14 we were on our way to the hospital ready to evict our little tenant. 

I was really nervous about being induced.  Other than a c-section, it was the only other thing I did not want to happen.  I was petrified that being induced meant my labor was not going to progress and I would be holed up in the hospital for hours, days even waiting to have a baby only to end up having a c-section anyways.  Much to my surprise and relief, once I was hooked up to the monitors the nurse informed us that I was already having contractions.  Looks like Cooper decided there was no way he was getting forced out.

My contractions were about 5-7 minutes apart, but I was still only 1cm dilated, so around 7:30am we started pitocin.  At about 9am the doctor came and broke my water and informed me I was only 2cm.  We were all prepared for a long day of "laboring".  10am, cue the Anesthesiologist.  My contractions were out of control.  Every minute with only about one minute in between.  I could not believe how intense they felt.  About 20 minutes after getting the epidural I called the nurse back in.  I could still feel my legs, I could still feel my contractions, I could still feel everything!  She went ahead and checked my progress and I was at 6cm already.  She assured me the epidural would kick in and every 10 minutes she was clicking the machine trying to pump as much medicine into me as possible.  Unfortunately for me, baby Cooper was moving faster than that machine.  Another 20 minutes went by and I called the nurse back in.  She couldn't believe how much pain I was in, so she checked my progress.  9cm.  I had gone from 6 to 9 in 20 minutes!  I was fully dilated to 10 within the next 15 minutes and by 11:45am I was pushing for dear life.

Cooper still had a good amount to travel, but since my epidural was never able to get ahead of the pain I felt every glorious contractions and all that wonderful pressure.  I swore he was right there and all I needed was a few pushes to get him out.  Sadly, the doctor informed me that this was not the case.  After a little over an hour of pushing, Cooper arrived sunny side up at 12:53pm.  If you want to know what pushing out a 9lbs 6oz baby au natural feels like....it hurts, and it was definitely NOT in my birth plan.  I clearly remember looking at my doctor and saying "You tell Dr. Holland he needs to work on his skills!  He assured me this baby was not 9lbs yet!"  Luckily, about 20 minutes after having Cooper the epidural was able to catch up and I was gloriously numb from the waist down for the next half hour.  I at least got some relief out of it ; )

By 2pm we were in our recovery room with our new little bundle of joy.  6 hours of labor.  Half of what it took for me to have Ryleigh.  Even though I had to do it natural, I felt like I was going to vomit with every push and contraction, and I had to deal with a raging case of heartburn throughout the pushing process, I really think I would take 6 hours of labor over 12 hours any day.  I guess Cooper decided that after 40 1/2 weeks, why prolong it anymore?

So that's Cooper's story.  Like I said, a much different, much more intense story than his sister that's for sure.  But I wouldn't change it : )  Now lets get to what everyone really cares about...the pictures.

leaving for the hospital...one last shot of the belly

before starting the pitocin...clearly we haven't reached the height of the contractions yet

after getting my epidural & realizing it was not going to help me this time...i didn't even get to enjoy a popsicle this time around!

Finally here!

not a happy camper

Coopers first cry

getting that magic number...9lbs 6oz

Daddy having a little heart-to-heart

Cooper's first meal

with Yaya

2 hours after delivery...everyone resting up

Ryleigh meets baby Cooper

Ryleigh meets baby Cooper...and brought him gifts!

this adorable moment lasted about 10 seconds

our new family of 4

Yaya with her babies

25 hours after delivery, we were ready to get outta there!  Getting Cooper ready to venture out into the world.

all decked out, looking quite handsome

Preparing to leave

safely inside the car

kisses from his big sister to welcome him home

"here, you have some and I'll have some"

Lucy approves too : )

Here are a few pictures from Cooper's first week at home.  I will post the pictures from his visit with Poppi, Uncle Jason, Aunt Bekah and baby Olivia soon!