A real picture of post-pregnancy: 5 months

This post is part of my series, A Real Picture of Post-Pregnancy, where I document my journey of losing 52 pounds of baby weight, after giving birth to my third baby in 4 years. (For my raw, unedited look at my 10 months of pregnancy, check out my series, A Real Picture of Pregnancy.)

I’m at the 40-pound mark!

Wow. Did I really say that?

I’ve lost 40 pounds. That sounds like such a huge number.

I’m soooo proud of myself… I’m just going to own it.

This month, I learned the importance of the 80/20 rule. I lived it. I chose not to expect perfection of myself, but to make great decisions, most of the time. Here’s how it works: Most of the time, I eat well and work out. But 20 percent of the time, life happens. It’s not always realistic for me to have prepped salads and green smoothies. I’m not always able to make it to boot camp. But as often as I can, I do make it happen. And on the days when I can’t, (and this is very important)… I don’t get down on myself. That is a choice.

A lot of “life” happened this month! I had exciting work opportunities, family visitors and birthdays! I’ve had more cheat days than usual, but I’m not stressing about it.

At the beginning of the month, my husband and oldest son went to California to see family for his 4th birthday. I was home with the baby and toddler, and one night, my dad randomly called me and asked if I wanted to bring the little ones to come visit him in Texas. “Yeah right! I’m not flying alone, with a toddler and baby,” I told him on the phone. And then I hung up and thought about it. What’s the worst that could happen? You only live once. An hour later, I called him back, he booked the tickets and we left. The. Next. Day. Flying alone with a 2-year-old and 4-month-old was an experience in itself (which I’ll save for another post), but it went so much better than I expected, and we had a fantastic visit with my dad. We watched the Fort Worth cattle run, where my dad bought a cowboy hat and vest for the 2-year-old. Cutest thing ever. (Where my Texas #glowgirls at?!?) We had lots of pool time, and when the babies were napping, I got to run on the treadmill, drink my favorite cocktails and lay out by the pool. #momcation All in all, we had a blast, and it was all because I gave myself permission to break routine, and asked, What’s the worst that could happen?

A week later, I was picked for an on-camera opportunity… for the blog… in New York City! (Woooooooot!) Talk about a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. An amazing friend offered to watch the kids (that’s a whole other post), so the hubby got to join me. Needless to say, the 36 hours we spent in New York were like a dream. We walked the city. I got to eat dinner hands-free. I got to digest my food and actually converse with my husband, free of yelling, wrestling and the other toddler-boy interruptions that are so central to our life right now. We got to lay in a king-sized bed and watch TV. It was glorious. I’m pretty sure I was smiling for the entire trip. Like, even before the plane took off. In fact, before we boarded our flight, I spilled an entire venti coffee all over my legs and the floor of the airport Starbucks. Literally, I still never stopped smiling. I wiped off my legs, and asked the barista if I could help with the floors, and literally, the whole time, the smile on my mom-without-kids face didn’t fade. Nothing can get me down today. Absolutely nothing. It was that magical.

My favorite part of New York was that… I was just Janie. Not mom. Not maid, not housecleaner or chauffeur or disciplinarian. I was just me. Turns out, when I’m not breaking up toddler fights, changing diapers and cleaning up spaghetti off the tile floors, I’m actually pretty fun. I had forgotten how fun I could really be. You know, when I’m not wearing the mom-of-3-young-kids hat. I felt so alive. So young. So happy. I felt like myself. It’s not that I don’t love catering to my family, but it was just nice. To have a break.

Well, that wasn’t much of a “fitness and eating” update for you, but the theme of this month is: Life happened, I went with it, and I’m glad I did. In Texas, I drank a few cocktails, but I also brought my own oatmeal packets with flax seeds and berries for breakfast, ate salads for lunch and roasted veggies for dinner. In New York, I (for sure) drank alcohol throughout the trip (duh), but I ate a yogurt when I needed a mid-day snack, I had fruit salad and trail mix at the shoot and at our quiet, kid-free dinner, all I ordered was a hot veggie plate. I didn’t workout in New York, but the day we got home, I got right back to boot camp.

I enjoyed life, but when I could, I got right back to my routine.

And the whole time, I stayed positive and stayed proud of myself.

Make a choice not to expect perfection. When things come up, make allowances. And then, get back on track as soon as you can.

Don’t get down on yourself.

You’re a mom. Life happens.

#justkeepgoing

Oh, and #YOLO.

12 pounds to go!